Linda Espinosa

Linda M Espinosa is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia and most recently the Co-Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University. She has had experience as a preschool teacher, child care center director, elementary school principal, central office administrator, State program director, and corporate Vice President of Education. Her practical experience and research interests focus on the design and evaluation of optimal learning environments for young children who are at risk for school failure. Dr. Espinosa is currently on the Board of Examiners for the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and a Commissioner for the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Accreditation Standards and Criteria Commission. She has served as a consulting editor for Early Childhood Research Quarterly, Early Childhood Research & Practice, Information Technology in Childhood Education, and the Prevention Researcher and serves and multiple national commissions. Her current research interests include the professional development and teacher preparation systems and their relationship to effective early childhood teaching practices. Dr. Espinosa has worked extensively with low-income Hispanic/Latino children and families throughout the state of California. She developed and directed the Family Focus for School Success program in Redwood City, California which has received state and national recognition. She has published many articles and training manuals on how to establish effective educational services for low income, minority families who are acquiring English as a second language. She is the past Treasurer of the NAEYC Governing Board and participated on the National Academy of Sciences Research Roundtable on Head Start. She has recently completed a three year study of the effectiveness of technology in supporting primary school reform and was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Research Board Committee on Early Childhood Pedagogy project and a contributing author to “Eager to Learn: Educating Our Preschoolers.” She completed her B.A. at the University of Washington, her Ed.M. at Harvard University and her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology at the University of Chicago.