Press Release: 7/1/2025

Welcoming a new board member: Kimm Quinlan

 

Alyssa Haywoode

JULY 1, 2025

This week, Kimm Quinlan joins the Strategies for Children’s board of directors, starting what promises to be an exciting three-year term. Quinlan brings a wealth of early education experience as well as a promising vision for the future.

Quinlan started as a classroom, assistant teacher moved into administration and took on the work of teaching and coaching early educators. Today, she’s the Director of Early Childhood Initiatives at Holyoke Community College.

She has also been a presenter on Strategies’ 9:30 Call.

 

A colleague recently referred to Quinlan as a “pollinator,” someone who connects people in ways that create a positive ripple effect.

“That’s what I want to focus on,” Quinlan says, “acquiring information and sharing it so that it can be acted on in ways that don’t depend on me.”

Quinlan’s connection to advocacy and to Strategies for Children goes back to her years working at a Head Start program in Holyoke, Mass., when “the Amys” would come to local meetings. That was Amy O’Leary and Amy Kershaw, two advocates who both worked for Strategies for Children. (Today O’Leary is Strategies’ executive director, and Kershaw is the commissioner of the state’s Department of Early Education and Care.)

Then, in 2020, there was an even greater need for advocacy and for community..

“During Covid, when the 9:30 Call started, I couldn’t help but want to be closer to advocacy work and be a part of the 9:30 Call community that people so desperately needed.

“Over the last five years, the value and importance of Strategies for Children has gone far beyond building community. Strategies has always had a strong advocacy network, and it has always had a wonderful vision for the field. Now it’s growing into something even more meaningful. Five years ago, who knew that The 9:30 Call would be translated into other languages? And Strategies’ contributions to the EC101 projectare going to elevate everyone’s connections, knowledge, and understanding.”

Quinlan says the next steps for advocates across the state included making early childhood programs more affordable for families. She’s also adamant about providing more support for early educators, especially the ones who are new to the field.

“I’m wondering about ways to continue evolving, if there are more opportunities to engage early educators who are in classrooms and can’t be on the 9:30 call, who might not be able to join the Advocacy Network. Are there ways that they can benefit from Strategies more directly?”

Quinlan adds:

“To keep the field growing in a positive direction, we have to support educators so we can avoid the high turnover that we see. We have to help educators get college degrees and training and find support and coaching for their implementation in classrooms.

“We have to talk about low wages and we need to look at work environments and support systems so that educators feel they can be successful in their work. And I think organizations like Strategies that are convening people and providing information in easy, accessible ways are addressing retention and job satisfaction by connecting educators to other colleagues in the field.”

This work could include expanding mentorship and apprentice opportunities, Quinlan says. It could also be an opportunity to look at how other professions—from plumbing to healthcare—welcome and engage their newest members. And creating more connections between newer and more experienced early educators can create ways to share lessons about teaching and advocacy.

“We’re excited to welcome Kimm to the board,” O’Leary, Strategies’ executive director, says. “Her experience, her connections, and her commitment to children, families, and educators in western Massachusetts give her a unique perspective that will help us have even more impact.”

And Quinlan says, “I’m excited about the work of engaging in conversations that help create a dynamic, evolving vision of the field.”