The strength of MECLP lies in the expertise, passion, and commitment of our staff and faculty. Their deep experience in early childhood education, leadership development, policy, and equity work is essential to advancing our mission. Together, they guide and support emerging leaders across Maryland, ensuring the program not only inspires but sustains meaningful systems change for young children, families, and communities.
Anne Douglass (Ph.D. Brandeis University)
CONTACT INFORMATION: aldougla@umbc.edu
Dr. Douglass is founder and executive director of the Institute for Early Education Leadership and Innovation at the University of Massachusetts Boston where she is also associate professor and director of the bachelor’s degree and leadership programs in early childhood education. Dr. Douglass is an expert on leadership, quality improvement and professional development strategies and policies that promote talented, diverse, entrepreneurial leadership from within ECE. She is the author of a new book entitled Leading for Change in Early Care and Education: Cultivating Leadership from Within. Her prior experience includes 20 years teaching, administering, and consulting in early care and education programs serving low-income children and their families. She has a PhD in Social Policy from Brandeis University, a master’s degree in education from Harvard University, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Wellesley College.
Amanda Lopes (Ph.D. University of Massachusetts Boston)
CONTACT INFORMATION: Amanda.Lopes@umb.edu
Amanda Lopes earned her Ph.D. at University of Massachusetts Boston. She has 25 years of experience as an early educator, program administrator, consultant, and trainer. She has a B.A. in Theatre Arts from the University of Puget Sound, M.S.Ed in Early Childhood Education from the College of Saint Rose, and a Post Masters Certificate from University of Massachusetts Boston in Early Childhood Education Research, Policy and Practice. Amanda currently teaches courses focused on the creative arts, curriculum, and leadership at University of Massachusetts Boston and serves as a leadership and professional development consultant for early education programs throughout the northeast. Amanda is thrilled to be bringing her passion for early education, instructional leadership, and creativity to UMBC.
Walker Swain, Adjunct Professor (Principal Researcher, Learning Policy Institute)
CONTACT INFORMATION: walkersw@umbc.edu
Walker Swain is a Principal Researcher at the Learning Policy Institute, where he specializes in developing equity-oriented policy research and advising state and federal education policy. Currently, he works with LPI’s Educator Quality and Equitable Resources and Access teams. He has coauthored studies in academic journals including Educational Researcher, Sociology of Education, Economics of Education Review, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, and the American Educational Research Journal on a range of education and broader public policy issues.
Before joining LPI, Swain served as an American Educational Research Association/American Association for the Advancement of Science Congressional Fellow in the United States Senate working on education and labor policy for Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Health Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. He was also previously Associate Professor of Education and Public Policy at the University of Georgia, where he was honored with the Mary McCleod Bethune Educator Award for efforts to advance social justice in the classroom and beyond. He began his career as a middle school science teacher and basketball coach in Louisville, KY.
Swain holds a PhD in Leadership and Policy Studies from the Peabody College of Education and Human Development at Vanderbilt University, an MPP From Duke University, an MAT in Secondary Science from the University of Louisville, and a BA in Political Science and Biology from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Louise Joel Corwin, M.Ed. holds a BS in government and political science and a Masters in education for at-risk children. She was executive director of Ready At Five for 16 years until she retired in 2017. Under Louise’s leadership, Ready At Five became a dynamic statewide non-profit program focused on elevating the discussion regarding the practice and quality of early childhood education in Maryland so that all children will be ready for school. Prior to joining Ready At Five, Louise was chief of early childhood partnerships in the Maryland Governor’s Office for Children, Youth, and Families and coordinator of the Office for Children in Baltimore County. She is a past board member of the Abilities Network and serves on numerous state and local committees and councils charged with using data to drive policies to support young children and their families. In her previous role as Visiting Executive in Residence at the Sherman Center, and in her current role as Co-Chair of the MECLP Advisory Committee, Louise spearheads the implementation of the Maryland Early Childhood Leadership Program (MECLP).
Division of Early Childhood Development, Maryland State Department of Education