Associates
In addition to ITSG Principal Consultants, EHS Start Up Planners and Infant/Toddler Specialists, ITSG partners and collaborates with a diverse group of EHS Content Specialist Associates who understand “Best Practices” for serving Infants/Toddlers and Pregnant Women and who will assist programs to ensure that the linguistic and cultural diversity is supported within each Head Start Program and Community
ITSG and its associates provide expert, responsive and realistic consultation and professional development services. ITSG services are designed to meet the Head Start Performance Standards for serving Infants/Toddlers, and to ensure that goals and objectives for Head Start programs are implemented successfully.
Dr. Pamilia Rivera-Vélez is a bilingual, licensed psychologist. She is a Summa Cum Laude PhD graduate of Carlos Albizu University in Puerto Rico. Pamilia acts as Mental Health Consultant for ACUDEN Head Start/Early Head Start (EHS) which serves over 18,000 children and has 21 delegate agencies throughout Puerto Rico. In that position, she provides island-wide staff training programs. She also participates on federal Head Start/EHS reviews. Pamilia brings her extensive experience in planning and implementing family mental health services and systems to ITSG. She specializes in interdisciplinary services on behalf of children and families. Pamilia is fully bilingual Spanish-English with high proficiency in oral, writing, and reading skills.
Jenny Lerner has a Master’s degree in Educational Technology with concentrations in Bilingual Education and Early Childhood. She has 20 years experience working with National, Regional, Migrant, and local Head Start and Early Head Start (EHS) programs. She is nationally known for her expertise in English Language Learners, Early Literacy, and Early Mathematics. Jenny worked with Sonoma State University as an early math curriculum developer. She is currently part of an interdisciplinary team at the University of Denver funded by the Office of Head Start to create early mathematics through developmentally appropriate computer games. Jenny is trilingual in English, Spanish, and Hebrew.
CONTENT AREA SPECIALIST: Infant/Toddler Dual Language Learning, Early Literacy, Early Math.
Lisa Monique Martin holds a BA in Journalism and will receive a second BA in Infant/Toddler Early Childhood Education in the summer of 2010. Like Linda and Pat, she is a fully certified Infant/Toddler Specialist and Academic Instructor for the Program for Infant/Toddler Care (PITC) at WestEd. For PITC’s California project, Lisa worked with infant/toddler centers to promote and document quality care. Lisa was also a Project Assistant for the Early Head Start (EHS)/Hilton SpecialQuest project, providing training and support to EHS/Head Start programs serving children with disabilities across the United States, and a StoryQuest trainer, providing early literacy training and support to EHS/Head Start programs across the United States.
CONTENT AREA SPECIALIST: Infant/Toddler center-based services.
Vickie Manning is a well-rounded consultant! She earned an M.A. in Human Resources Management, a B.S. in Human Services, an A.A. in Early Childhood Education, and is employed as Human Resources Manager for a Head Start/EHS in Anchorage, AK serving many cultures and ethnicities. Vickie guides agencies in all aspects of human resources, policies & procedures, conflict management, compensations, benefits management, and compliance. She also has a stellar record in establishing goals and directions for her agency’s training programs to ensure staff meet OHS requirements as well as the mission and goals of her agency. Those staff have a strong record of attending and graduating from colleges and universities – often through distance learning combined with local cohorts.
CONTENT AREA SPECIALIST: Human Resources, Training Systems
