Alabama’s Office of School Readiness, which runs the state-funded pre-K programs, has a new director. Jan Hume was appointed to the post by Gov. Bentley in November. She is the former Executive Director of the Alabama School Readiness Alliance (ASRA), a nonprofit dedicated to closing achievement gaps by helping children enter school ready to succeed. In February, Allison de la Torre, former policy associate for the national nonprofit organization Pre-K Now, joins ASRA as the Executive Director. These two individuals have a great record of growing high-quality, voluntary pre-K programs.
Jan Hume helped to build statewide awareness of the importance of pre-K and worked with communities and organizations across the state to increase access to high-quality pre-K. She received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Auburn University and worked for 10 years on a variety of public policy issues with Auburn’s Center for Governmental Services. She worked as program director with Leadership Alabama before joining ASRA, a partnership formed by A+, Alabama Giving, Alabama Partnership for Children, and VOICES for Alabama’s Children.
Allison de la Torre managed a $2.5 million annual grantmaking portfolio in more than 15 states to advance public policies that promote high-quality pre-kindergarten. She has a record of success designing and implementing state-based policy initiatives and is connected to a national network of education policy leaders, children’s advocates, funders and experts. She recently received a Master in Education Policy from the University of Maryland.
A+ looks forward to working with Allison de la Torre and continuing to work with Jan Hume to grow and support voluntary high quality pre-K in Alabama. Click here to read more about ASRA and here to visit the Office of School Readiness website.
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