Region 1-A
Cook County (City of Chicago)
In partnership with Every Child Ready Chicago (ECRC)
Region 1-A Reports
Early Childhood Regional Needs Assessment highlights data and stories from community members across the Region and includes strengths, family- and community-identified needs, and recommendations for how to make our local Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services more accessible and equitable.
Addendum includes additional community feedback captured as our Regional Team and Action and Family Councils shared our initial report’s findings throughout the Region.
NEW Action Plan is a living community document that focuses on the top priorities from our Region’s initial ECEC needs assessment. Council members developed Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound (SMART) goals for each recommendation and plans and timelines to fulfill them.
Action Council Members
Alicia Rivera, Child Advocate, Parent/Family Member Representative
Racheal Jackson, Child Advocate, Parent/Family Member Representative
Bridget Rundquist, Share Our Spare, Director of Partnerships and Community Engagement
Candace Moore, City of Chicago Mayor's Office, Director of Early Learning
Carie Bires, Chicago Head Start Collaborative, Managing Director of Illinois Policy
Carrie Comer-Yates, Chicago Public Schools Office of Diverse Learner Supports and Services, Sr. Manager of Early Childhood Instructional Quality
Cerathel Burgess-Burnett, Chicago Department of Family Support Services, Deputy Commissioner
Contessa Houston, US Department of Commerce, Field Supervisor
Deborah Chalmers, Illinois Action for Children, Director Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
Felipa Mena, COFI/Power PAC Illinois, Family Coordinator
Ilana Friedman, The JUF Early Childhood Collaborative, Early Childhood Policy Analyst
Kate Connor, Truman College, Senior Vice President of Academics and Student Affairs
Kiara Williams, Family Focus Englewood, Case Manager
Leslie McKinily, Chicago Public Schools Office of Early Childhood Education, Chief Early Childhood Education Officer
Lisa Horn-Cronin, Easterseals, Director of Early Learning Services Business Operations
Marquinta Thomas, Illinois Action for Children, Director of Referrals and Outreach
Noni Arnold, Helping Hands, Director
Oriana Wilson, Child Advocate
Rachel Oppenheimer, City Colleges of Chicago, Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives
Tommie Robinson, Black Child Development Institute Chicago, Policy and Advocacy Chair
Family Council Members
Cecilia Gutierrez, Roseland
Delia Perez, North Lawndale
Diana Lucia Padilla, Logan Square
Edith Rivera, South Lawndale-Little Village
Eleni C Remigio, Humboldt Park
Jesenia Briones, South Lawndale-Little Village
LaDavia Robinson, Beverly
Linda Wang, Bridgeport
Lisa Radcliffe, Roseland
Maria Dolores Gomez Lopez, Chicago Lawn
Maricela Salazar, Belmont-Cragin
Marshanae Mack, Near West Side
Meg Helder, Avondale
Mykela Collins, Auburn Gresham & Englewood
Priyanka Varshney, Edgewater
FY24 Action Council Notes
FY24 Workgroup Notes
FY24 Family Council Notes
Meet Your Regional Team!
Edna Navarro Vidaurre
Edna Navarro Vidaurre (she/her/ella) is the Regional Council Manager for the Region 1-A (City of Chicago). Edna has over 30 years in the field of early childhood education and care and has served in a variety of roles, including Family and Community Engagement Manager for the Office of Early Childhood Education at Chicago Public Schools (CPS), Assistant Director of Community Systems Development at Illinois Action for Children, Preschool Teacher in CPS and at a Community Early Learning Center, and Illinois Early Childhood Fellow. She serves on a volunteer basis on the Collaboration on Child Homelessness Illinois (COCHI) Leadership Team, Erikson Institute Early Childhood Leadership Alumni Advisory Board, and others.
Edna believes that communities that engage residents in building a place they want to live are imperative to the well-being of children and their families. She is an activist in her Portage Park neighborhood, where she founded a local park advisory council and was instrumental in the allocation of $1.3 million dollars in capital improvements to her local Chicago Park District. Edna is married, has four children and a two-year-old pandemic Maltese puppy named Luna.
Jacquelyn (Jacquy) Ledezma
Jacquelyn (Jacquy) Ledezma (she/her/ella) is the Family & Community Engagement Specialist for Region 1-A (City of Chicago). Jacquy holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago and an Infant Toddler Specialist certificate from Erikson Institute. She was raised in Little Village and is the first college graduate in her family. Jacquy has 15 years of experience working in the early childhood field. Her experience ranges from providing direct services to families as a home visitor to most recently overseeing an education program as Education Manager. Jacquy is trained in a myriad of parenting curricula and has presented at early childhood conferences within the State and nationally. She now resides in Archer Heights and loves to travel with her husband, son, and twin daughters.
Socorro (Coco) Hinojosa
Socorro (Coco) Hinojosa (she/ella/elle/lei) is the Administrative Support for Region 1-A (City of Chicago). Coco has been very involved in the field of early childhood education. She was an Infant/Toddler and Preschool teacher for some years in Seattle. She also served as a Program Site Manager for the Seattle Preschool Program and Seattle Public Schools, overseeing preschool and school-age after-school programs. Most recently, Coco served as a Center Director for a child care center in Illinois.
Coco believes that "you/me" can become "we" when we speak the same language. Coco speaks four languages, which helps her communicate to a wide variety of people. She is open to learning a fifth or sixth language to help more people obtain the resources they need. Coco loves to read, watch tv/shows, run, sleep, and teach yoga.
Contact Edna Navarro Vidaurre
Please fill out the form below to contact Edna. Your message will go directly to her inbox. You may also reach her at (309) 393-2552.
Región 1-A
Condado de Cook (Ciudad de Chicago)
En alianza con Every Child Ready Chicago
Informes de la Región 1-A
La Evaluación de necesidades regionales de la primera infancia destaca datos e historias de miembros de la comunidad en toda la región e incluye fortalezas, necesidades identificadas por la familia y la comunidad, y recomendaciones sobre cómo hacer que nuestros servicios locales de educación y atención de la primera infancia (ECEC) sean más accesibles y equitativos.
La Adenda incluyen comentarios adicionales de la comunidad capturados cuando nuestro Equipo Regional y los Comités de Acción y Familiar compartieron las conclusiones de nuestro informe inicial en toda la región.
El NUEVO Plan de acción es un documento comunitario vivo que se centra en las principales prioridades de la evaluación inicial de necesidades de ECEC de nuestra región. Los miembros del consejo desarrollaron metas específicas, mensurables, alcanzables, relevantes y con plazos determinados (SMART) para cada recomendación y planes y cronogramas para cumplirlas.
Miembros del Comité de Acción
Alicia Rivera, Child Advocate, Parent/Family Member Representative
Racheal Jackson, Child Advocate, Parent/Family Member Representative
Bridget Rundquist, Share Our Spare, Director of Partnerships and Community Engagement
Candace Moore, City of Chicago Mayor's Office, Director of Early Learning
Carie Bires, Chicago Head Start Collaborative, Managing Director of Illinois Policy
Carrie Comer-Yates, Chicago Public Schools Office of Diverse Learner Supports and Services, Sr. Manager of Early Childhood Instructional Quality
Cerathel Burgess-Burnett, Chicago Department of Family Support Services, Deputy Commissioner
Contessa Houston, US Department of Commerce, Field Supervisor
Deborah Chalmers, Illinois Action for Children, Director Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
Felipa Mena, COFI/Power PAC Illinois, Family Coordinator
Ilana Friedman, The JUF Early Childhood Collaborative, Early Childhood Policy Analyst
Kate Connor, Truman College, Senior Vice President of Academics and Student Affairs
Kiara Williams, Family Focus Englewood, Case Manager
Leslie McKinily, Chicago Public Schools Office of Early Childhood Education, Chief Early Childhood Education Officer
Lisa Horn-Cronin, Easterseals, Director of Early Learning Services Business Operations
Marquinta Thomas, Illinois Action for Children, Director of Referrals and Outreach
Noni Arnold, Helping Hands, Director
Oriana Wilson, Child Advocate
Rachel Oppenheimer, City Colleges of Chicago, Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives
Tommie Robinson, Black Child Development Institute Chicago, Policy and Advocacy Chair
Miembros del Comité Familiar
Cecilia Gutierrez, Roseland
Delia Perez, North Lawndale
Diana Lucia Padilla, Logan Square
Edith Rivera, South Lawndale-Little Village
Eleni C Remigio, Humboldt Park
Jesenia Briones, South Lawndale-Little Village
LaDavia Robinson, Beverly
Linda Wang, Bridgeport
Lisa Radcliffe, Roseland
Maria Dolores Gomez Lopez, Chicago Lawn
Maricela Salazar, Belmont-Cragin
Marshanae Mack, Near West Side
Meg Helder, Avondale
Mykela Collins, Auburn Gresham & Englewood
Priyanka Varshney, Edgewater
FY24 Notas del Comité de Acción
FY24 Notas del grupo de trabajo
FY24 Notas del Comité Familiar
¡Conozca a tu equipo regional!
Edna Navarro Vidaurre
Edna Navarro Vidaurre (ella/la) es la Gerente del Comité Regional para la Región 1-A (Ciudad de Chicago). Edna tiene más de 30 años en el ámbito de la educación y el cuidado de la primera infancia y se ha desempeñado en una variedad de roles, incluido el de Gerente de Participación Familiar y Comunitaria para la Oficina de Educación de la Primera Infancia en las Escuelas Públicas de Chicago (CPS, por sus siglas en inglés), Subdirectora de Desarrollo de Sistemas Comunitarios en Illinois Action for Children, Maestra de Educación Temprana en las Escuelas Publicas de Chicago y en Centros Comunitarios, y Illinois Early Childhood Fellow. Ella sirve como voluntaria en el Equipo de Liderazgo de la Colaboración sobre La Falta de Vivienda Infantil(conocida como COCHI, por sus siglas en inglés), la Junta Asesora de Alumnado Previo para el Liderazgo de la Primera Infancia del Instituto Erikson y otros.
Edna cree que las comunidades que involucran a cada residente en la construcción de un lugar en el que quieren vivir son imprescindibles para el bienestar de las familias y sus menores. Es activista en el vecindario de Portage Park, donde fundó un consejo asesor de parques local y jugó un papel decisivo en la asignación de $1.3 millones de dólares para su Chicago Park District local. Edna está casada, es madre de cuatro y tiene una perrita maltesa de dos años llamada Luna.
Jacquelyn (Jacquy) Ledezma
Jacquelyn (Jacquy) Ledezma (ella/la) es la Especialista en Participación Familiar y Comunitaria de la Región 1-A (Ciudad de Chicago). Jacquy tiene una licenciatura en Psicología de la Universidad de Illinois en Chicago y un certificado de Especialista en bebés y niños pequeños del Instituto Erikson. Se crió en Little Village y es la primera graduada universitaria de su familia. Jacquy tiene 15 años de experiencia trabajando en el campo de la primera infancia. Su experiencia abarca desde la prestación de servicios directos a las familias como visitante domiciliaria hasta la supervisión más reciente de un programa educativo como Gerente de Educación. Jacquy está capacitada en una infinidad de planes de estudios para padres y se ha presentado en conferencias sobre la primera infancia dentro del estado y a nivel nacional. Ahora vive en Archer Heights y le encanta viajar con su esposo, su hijo y sus hijas gemelas.
Socorro (Coco) Hinojosa
Socorro (Coco) Hinojosa (ella/la) es el Asistente Administrativo de la Región 1-A (ciudad de Chicago). Coco ha estado muy involucrada en el campo de la Educación de la Primera Infancia. Durante algunos años fue maestra de bebés, niños pequeños y nivel preescolar en Seattle. También se desempeñó como Coordinadora de Programa en Sitio para el Programa Preescolar de Seattle y las Escuelas Públicas de Seattle, supervisando los programas extracurriculares de nivel preescolar y aquellos para niños en edad escolar. Más recientemente, Coco se desempeñó como Directora General de un centro para el cuidado de niños en Illinois.
Coco sostiene que, cuando se habla el mismo idioma, "tú/yo" puede convertirse en "nosotros". Dado que habla cuatro idiomas, Coco puede comunicarse con una gran variedad de personas. Está dispuesta a aprender un quinto o sexto idioma, de manera de ayudar a que más personas obtengan los recursos que necesitan. A Coco le encanta leer, ver programas de televisión, correr, dormir y enseñar yoga.
Contacta a Edna Navarro Vidaurre
Por favor, complete el siguiente formulario para ponerse en contacto con Edna. Su mensaje irá directamente a su buzón de correo electrónico. También puede comunicarse con ella al (309) 393-2552.