Amanda Colon has worked in education for the last 15 years. In the Ascension Parish school system, she taught in various primary grades in the inclusion classrooms. Amanda also served in the role of School Building Level Committee Facilitator which provided an opportunity for her to support teachers and children who needed additional support, interventions, or screening for evaluation of special educational services. During this role, she found a passion for supporting families and connecting families to resources that would assist their children throughout their journey in the educational process. In the spring of 2019, Amanda started at the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) on the Early Childhood Strategy Team as the manager of Family Support, and Coordinated Enrollment. During the four years in this position, she was able to support early childhood leaders across the state to strengthen the coordinate enrollment processes and build family engagement strategies that supported families to find high-quality early childhood education and community resources. Additionally, she led a statewide stakeholder committee that passed the first ever Early Childhood Family Engagement Framework designed to guide community networks. Currently, Amanda continues her early childhood work in Ascension Early Childhood Ready Start Network by supporting over 30 centers with quality initiatives, and family engagement, and community partnerships. She is a volunteer with the Louisiana Association of Young Child Educators. Amanda is a registered Adverse Childhood Experiences Educator and is community volunteer speaker with the Louisiana Department of Health.