Staff & Board of Directors

Ruth, who has led WECA since 2002, is a respected voice for early care and education on the local, regional, state, and national levels. She has extensive executive leadership experience working with organizations, associations, counties, and municipalities. Ruth serves on various local and state ECE-focused organizations and coalitions and is a leading advocate for strengthening ECE and its workforce through policy and systems improvement. She has a bachelor’s degree from Grinnell College.

Jeanette, who has worked at WECA since 1997, helps provide direct oversight to the many of its programs, including the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood^® Wisconsin and REWARD Wisconsin Stipend programs, in addition to membership, conference, and training. Jeanette holds a master’s degree in adult education with an emphasis in early childhood education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and feels strongly about supporting the early childhood workforce with education, increased compensation, and overall well-being. Jeanette supports statewide early childhood workforce research and co-authored the Wisconsin Training and Technical Assistance Professional Competencies for those working with adults in ECE.