Position: Assistant Professor & Director, Project RISE
Office: LAC F113
Phone: (562) 938-4761
Email: drafanello@lbcc.edu

Donna relocated from Chicago in 2002 and will probably always consider herself a Midwesterner, as grateful as she is to leave Chicago winters behind! She earned her B.S. in social work from Loyola University and her M.Ed. in early childhood leadership and advocacy from National-Louis University , both in Chicago . Donna and her partner live in Long Beach with their daughter, Sadie.

Work Experience:

Donna has over 20 years' experience working with children and families, including the following roles: preschool teacher and director, nonprofit administrator, program director, home visitor, nanny, child development lab instructor, and child & family counselor. Positions she has held in her career include:

· Children Today: Child & Family Counselor, Program Director, Executive Director
· Illinois Branch of the International Dyslexia Association: Executive Director
· The McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood Leadership at National-Louis University : (Director) Training Coordinator, Field Supervisor, Communications Manager, and Senior Research Associate
· National-Louis University : Early Childhood Graduate Faculty
· ChildServ: Parent Educator/Home Visitor

Areas of Expertise/Research Interests: Program administration, children's mental health, child abuse prevention, and serving diverse populations in early childhood settings through a multicultural and anti-bias education.

Writing/Editing Credits:

Donna's writing has been published in numerous early childhood publications including Young Children, Child Care Information Exchange , and the Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education . In 2004, Donna published her first book -- Can't Touch My Soul – based on personal interviews with adult survivors of child sexual abuse. Donna's writing and editing credits include:

· Child Care Exchange: Associate Editor & Writing Project Director
· UCLA: Senior Writer & Editor
· American Academy of Pediatrics: Contributing Editor
· National Association for the Education of Young Children: Consulting Editor
· Chicago Parent Magazine: Columnist (book reviews)

· Editorial Review Panels:

McGraw-Hill, 2006 to present
Morrison Bookworks 2008
Pearson Merrill Prentice-Hall, 2004 to present
Reviewer, Thomson Delmar Learning, 2006 to present
· California AEYC: Editorial Panel
· Child Welfare League of America , National Task Force on Children and HIV Infection, Contributing Editor

Professional Activities:

Member, Long Beach Early Care and Education Committee, 2007 to present

Long Beach Homeless Coalition, 2002-present

Board Advisor, Children Today, 2004-2007

Child Care Exchange

World Forum Communications Team, 2005

Panel of 300, 2000-present

Validator, NAEYC Academy for Early Childhood Program Accreditation, 1993-2003

Board of Directors, Chicago Metro AEYC, 1996-97

Advisory Board, Cook County Child Care Resource and Referral, Chicago, IL, 1994-95

Award Committee, Illinois Preschool Owners Association/NCCA, 1997-2000

Member, Reader Panel, Working Mother magazine, 1999-2003