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The
School of the 21st Century is located in the Edward
Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy
at Yale University. In addition to Yale faculty,
there are a number of staff members,
affiliates and peer trainers,
and current research assistants
working with 21C.
Faculty
Edward
F. Zigler, Ph.D.
Sterling
Professor of Psychology at Yale, Emeritus
email:edward.zigler@yale.edu
Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of
Psychology Emeritus at Yale University, is the former
Head of the Psychology Section of the Child Study Center
at Yale’s School of Medicine and founder of the
Center in Child Development and Social Policy. The Center
has been renamed in his honor and is now known as The
Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social
Policy. He is the founder of the School of the 21st
Century, which has been adopted by more than 1,300 schools
nationwide.
Dr. Zigler regularly testifies as an
expert witness before congressional committees and has
served as a consultant to a number of cabinet-rank officers.
He was one of the planners of Project Head Start and
President Carter later named him chair of the 15th anniversary
analysis committee.
From 1970 to 1972, Dr. Zigler was the
first director of the U. S. Office of Child Development
(now the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families)
and chief of the U. S. Children’s Bureau. He was
also a member of the Advisory Committee on Head Start
Quality and Expansion and of the planning committee
for the Early Head Start program for families and children
ages zero to three.
He continues to work full-time on his scholarly efforts
and is currently conceptualizing a new role for Head
Start where universal public preschool becomes a reality.
Dr. Zigler’s many honors include awards from the
American Psychological Association, the American Academy
of Pediatrics, the Society for Research in Child Development,
the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,
the American Academy on Mental Retardation, the American
Orthopsychiatric Association, the National Head Start
Association, the Heinz Foundation, and Teachers College,
Columbia University. Among his many honorary degrees
are ones from Boston College and McGill University in
Canada.
Matia
Finn-Stevenson, Ph.D.
Associate Director, Edward Zigler Center in Child Development
and Social Policy
email:
matia.finn-stevenson@yale.edu
Matia Finn-Stevenson is a research
scientist at Yale University, Child Study Center where
she is also associate director of The Edward Zigler
Center in Child Development and Social Policy and the
director of the School of the 21st Century.
She has done extensive research in child development
and work-family life issues. In her current research,
she examines the impact of demographics and other changes
on schools and the involvement of schools in childcare
and family support programs. She is the author and co-author
of many scholarly publications, the most recent of which
are related to school reform, evaluations of school-based
support services, and child development. Among her publications
are books entitled Children in the Changing World; The
School of the 21st Century: Linking Child Care and Education;
Child Development and Social Policy; and The First Three
Years and Beyond: Brain Development and Social Policy.
Dr. Finn-Stevenson has been an advisor on domestic policy
issues to the staff of the White House Office of Policy
Development and a consultant to the Connecticut legislature's
Committee on Work and Family, the Committee on Education
and Labor, the U. S. House of Representatives, and the
U. S. Senate Subcommittee on Children, Youth, Families,
Alcohol, and Drug Abuse. She regularly advises school
districts and state departments of education on programs
and services for children and serves as a consultant
to state and federal policymakers and foundations. She
earned her doctorate from Ohio State University, Columbus,
Ohio.
Staff
Michelle
Albright , Ph.D.
Senior
Associate/Program Development and Evaluation
e-mail: michelle.albright@yale.edu
Dr. Albright joined the staff of the
Yale Bush Center in the fall of 2004 and heads the development
of the Middle Childhood Language and Literacy Project
for 21C.
For the past decade Dr. Albright has been developing,
implementing, and evaluating school-based interventions
that aim to enhance children’s academic engagement
and performance, as well as social-emotional health.
Her research and clinical work has focused on addressing
the unique needs of minority youth in urban areas including
Chicago, Baltimore, and New York City.
Dr. Albright has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from
the University of Illinois at Chicago, completed an
APA approved internship at University of Maryland, and
was a NIMH post-doctoral fellow in Quantitative Training
in Mental Health Research at New York University.
As a clinical and community psychologist Dr. Albright
has provided a variety of educational and mental health
services in school settings and has practical experience
in all aspects of 21C. She has served as a School-Family
Partnership Coordinator, a school psychologist, a health
educator, and a pediatric emergency room clinician.
Dr. Albright was a founding member of an elementary-school-based
health center and an interdisciplinary university-based
research center, as well as a core member of a team
that has developed school-based programs to enhance
children’s homework performance, family involvement
in education, and teachers’ capacity to communicate
with families. All of the projects she has worked on
represent partnerships between schools, universities,
and community, state, and/or federal organizations.
Dr. Albright has published on a variety of topics, including
a guide for teachers on how to effectively reach out
to families. She serves as a programmatic and statistical
consultant to several organizations and foundations,
and continues to teach undergraduate and graduate students
in the fields of psychology and education.
Vanessa
Joy Every , M.A. and Ph.D. Candidate
Research
Fellow/Instructional Technology
e-mail: vanessa.every@yale.edu
Vanessa
received her B.S. in Computer Science from Siena College,
and an M.A. in Elementary Education from Saint Joseph
College with a focus on Media & Technology. She
is also certified to teach grades K-6 in the State of
Connecticut.
Vanessa is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Educational
Technology at the University of Connecticut. Her research
interests include, Wikipedia (and wiki) use in Higher
Education, “new literacies,” and gender
differences in educational technology.
Misty
Ginicola , Ph.D.
Senior
Associate/Special Projects and Evaluation Studies
e-mail: ginicolam2@southernct.edu
Misty
Ginicola’s research has focused on using a developmental
lens to understand the varying experience of depression
in children. More broadly, she is interested in the
experience of mental health problems in school settings,
and the development of empirically based interventions
which can be utilized in a school setting. Misty is
currently an Assistant Professor, Counseling and School
Psychology at Southern Connecticut State University
and Senior Associate for Research and Evaluation for
The School of the 21st Century, there she works on several
evaluation projects, including 21C efficacy studies
and 21CCLC impact study in Independence, Missouri.
Valerie
Vergato Zielinski
Senior
Administrative Assistant/Events Coordinator
e-mail: valerie.zielinski@yale.edu
In
addition to providing administrative and financial
support for 21C, Valerie is the 21C Conference Coordinator.
Valerie
has been employed at Yale for more 20 years; prior
to working with 21C, she worked for the Provost
of Yale reconciling grant accounts and preparing
foundation budgets. She is a graduate of Branford
Hall School of Business.
21C
Affiliates/National Peer Trainers
Christopher
Cerf is an author, record and television producer,
composer-lyricist, editor, humorist, and co-founder
and president of the educational television production
company, Sirius Thinking, Ltd. Cerf played a pivotal
role in the ongoing funding of the Sesame Street television
show, through the creation, licensing and production
of educational records, toys and books.
For
over 30 years, he has also been a regular contributor
of music and lyrics to Sesame Workshop productions,
winning, in the process, two Grammy Awards and two
Emmy Awards for songwriting and music production.
Before
joining Sesame Street, Cerf spent eight years as a
senior editor at Random House, where he worked with
such diverse authors as George Plimpton, Andy Warhol,
and Ray Bradbury, and helped to create an in-school
reading program based on the famous Beginner Book
series, edited by Dr. Seuss. In 1993, Cerf renewed
his ties to Random House when he assumed the role
of Chairman of the Modern Library.
One
of Christopher Cerf's most acclaimed projects was
the editing and production of Marlo Thomas and Friends'
Free To Be...A Family book, album and TV special.
The book reached #1 on The New York Times bestseller
list within a week of publication, and the show received
a prime-time Emmy as the year's outstanding children's
special. Currently, Cerf serves as Creative Producer
of Between the Lions, the multiple-award-winning children's
literacy series his company, Sirius Thinking, created
for PBS.
Christopher's
father, the late Bennett Cerf, was co-founder and
president of Random House, and nationally known as
an editor, television personality, writer and humorist.
Dr.
Henrich's interests focus on the social and motivational
development of children and adolescents. Specifically,
he is interested in school adjustment over key educational
transitions (e.g., from elementary school to middle
school) and what parents can do to promote their
children's school success. Dr. Henrich is also interested
in the effects of other contextual factors, such
as peer groups and violence exposure, on school
adjustment.
Dr.
Henrich has been involved in the evaluation of several
educational interventions to promote school adjustment
and achievement. Most recently he has been working
with researchers at the National Center for Children
in Poverty on the evaluation of a school-based violence
prevention program, and he also collaborates with
colleagues at the Zigler Center in Child Development
and Social Policy on a national evaluation of the
Schools of the 21st Century.
Other
of Chris' interests include the motivation of children
with mental retardation and the policy implications/applications
of developmental research.
 Michael
Levine
Senior
Associate
email:michael.levine@sesameworkshop.org
Michael Levine is founding executive
director of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center and senior
associate at Yale's Edward Zigler Center in Child
Development and Social Policy. The Joan Ganz Cooney
Center is a newly established educational media,
research, and public dissemination organization
housed within the offices of Sesame Workshop.
The center will undertake and fund original research,
forge partnerships with communications industry
leaders to accelerate innovation in children's
media, and conduct symposia and an information
dissemination program for policymakers and the
public. Until recently, Levine was at The Asia
Society, where he oversaw interactive media and
educational initiatives to promote global knowledge
and understanding. He coordinated development
of the first national network of international
studies schools for low income and minority secondary
students and leads a multi-state network to promote
international education in US schools. Previously,
Levine oversaw Carnegie Corporation of New York's
work in early childhood development and primary
grades reforms, where he won national recognition.
Before joining Carnegie, Levine was in charge
of dropout prevention programs for the New York
City Board of Education and helped create a model
interagency preschool program for at-risk children
for Mayor Edward Koch. Levine received his BS
from Cornell University and his PhD from The Heller
School of Social Policy at Brandeis University.
He serves as a frequent adviser to many nationally
prominent companies.
Norma
Meek, Senior Associate, at the Zigler Center provides
training and technical assistance to schools implementing
21C. She is also Director of Student Services and
Parent Involvement for the Boyd County (KY) School
System and Director of the summer Math/Reading program.
Serving as Area Education Projects Coordinator through
the Tri-State Foundation, she distributes grants
to classroom teachers for innovative programs.
She
served for eight years as co-chair for a Leadership
Forum for Directors of Child Care programs throughout
the state at Asbury College each summer. Norma is
a past president of the Kentucky Coalition for Family
Resource Youth Services Centers and a past president
of the Kentucky School-Age Care Coalition. She has
also served on the Kentucky Prevention Child Abuse
Board and has been a member of the Governor's Child
Care Advisory Council.
Norma
chaired a Kentucky Child 2000 Initiative and also
chaired a Kentucky Work Group on the Governor's
Early Childhood Initiative. In 1995, Norma's Family
Resource Center received the first Harry J. Cowherd
Award for Excellence and in 1997 received the Kentucky
Coalition's Ruth Lerman Fitzpatrick Award. In 2001,
she received the YWCA Twin Award for Education.
Throughout her career she was named Teacher of the
Year twice.
Currently Norma is active in her community serving
as a Director of United Way, Past President of Pathways
Mental Health Board for ten counties, and Paramount
Arts Center Board of Directors. Appointed by the
mayor she is a Central Park Board Commissioner and
a member of CASA (Court Appointed Student Advocate).
She still finds time to serve on her local YMCA
Board. She recently became a member of the National
Early Literacy Advisory Council. Serving on the
Governor's Extended Learning Opportunities Council
keeps her active in after-school programming. She
has made numerous national presentations on behalf
of children and families. Norma is a Senior Associate
at the Yale Zigler Center.
 Patty
Schumacher
Senior
Associate/Coordinator of 21C Leadership Development
e-mail:
pschumacher@gmail.com
Dr. Patricia Schumacher joined
the staff of the Yale Zigler Center in the summer
of 2005 serving as senior associate and coordinator
of leadership development. She has 32 years of
public school experience ranging from classroom
instructor, counselor, elementary principal, director
of elementary education, to associate superintendent.
As principal,
she successfully implemented a School of the 21st
Century program at William Southern Elementary
in Independence School District in 1988. In 1993,
William Southern was named a National Blue Ribbon
School and Patty was recognized as the Principal
of the Year. As an Associate Superintendent in
Independence, MO Patty was responsible for the
expansion and quality of the School of the 21C
Programs in all 14 elementary schools and at the
district's Head Start Center serving over 1500
children a year. The Independence School District
was recognized by Working Mother magazine and
NBC's Tom Brokaw for its outstanding role in meeting
the needs of children and families in the community.
Patty has been the
recipient of several awards, most recently: Yale
University Outstanding Public Service to Children
and Families, University of Missouri College of
Education Recognition for commitment to all children's
learning, National PTA Honorary Life Member, and
Who's Who among Outstanding Americans.
She currently serves
on the board for the Independence Chamber of Commerce,
Child Abuse and Prevention Association, University
of Missouri Joanne H. Hook Center in Educational
Renewal, Missouri Partnership for Educational Renewal,
University of Missouri College of Education Alumni
Board, and YouthFriends. Patty has served on numerous
national boards and committees.
 Lee
Vent
Senior
Associate
e-mail:
leevent1@gmail.com
Lee Vent officially joined the
Yale 21C Staff as a Senior Associate on October
1, 2009. Prior to his affiliation with Yale, Lee
Vent was superintendent in Barton-Lexa, Arkansas.
A native of Arkansas, Vent began his educational
career as a classroom teacher in Missouri. He
soon returned to his home state in a number of
administrative capacities, including assistant
high school principal, middle school principal,
and superintendent at the Clarendon School District.
He also worked as director of career development
for Phillips County Community College. In 1990,
he became the superintendent in Paragould, where
he initiated the first 21C program in the state.
He later brought 21C to Forrest City where he
was superintendent from 1996 through 2008.
Research
Assistants
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