Scottdale Early Learning Adds New Board Members and Staff

Anita Douglas, development director, Scottdale Early Learning

Scottdale Early Learning, Inc. (SEL, www.scottdale.org) has named four new Board members and hired Anita Douglas to serve as the non-profit’s director of development. Now in its 41st year of serving low and moderate income children age six weeks to five years old, the non-profit recently completed a comprehensive strategic plan to direct future growth.

The new Board members are:

• Amity Farrar, executive vice president, POWER 10
• Antoinetta McKay, education program manager at Habitat for Humanity and children’s book author
• Jamee Lawson Nelson, assistant vice president of communication, Wells Fargo
• Daria Shelton, account manager and partnerships, The Networks of 11Alive

“We are delighted to welcome this prestigious group of professionals to our Board of Directors,” said Maryum Lewis Gibson, executive director of Scottdale Early Learning, Inc. “They are joining a dynamic team of board members who recently raised over a half million dollars in funding for the Center, under the leadership of Board Chair Cynthia Livingston.”

Anita Douglas is a graduate of Kennesaw State University (KSU) and is in the process of earning a Masters Degree in Public Administration from KSU. She has worked for the Division of Family and Children Services and for the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office in the Witness Unit. She is also the founder and CEO of Crown Innovative Business Solutions, a virtual assistant firm.

“Anita has already been helping Scottdale Early Learning remotely with grant-writing assistance for about two years, and she brings a wealth of fundraising experience from both her volunteer and professional work with the National Coalition of Black Women, Hurt2Heal, Hosea Helps, FlyChicks and Feed My Lambs,” said Gibson. “She's currently finishing her MPA at KSU and is a Certified Nonprofit Professional through the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance. Anita and our Board members will identify and invite businesses and individuals with a passion for serving children to learn more about how SEL works in our community. We are always seeking new partners to help fund our current programs and to support the new initiatives outlined in our strategic plan.”

About Scottdale Early Learning, Inc.

Founded in 1977 in DeKalb County’s historic Scottdale community, Scottdale Early Learning, Inc. (formerly Scottdale Child Development and Family Resource Center) is a 501(c)3 early care and educational organization serving low and moderate income families. Its mission is to provide early education that fosters the intellectual, creative, social, emotional, and physical development of its students age 6 weeks to 5 years old. SEL mitigates socioeconomic disadvantages through high-quality education, family involvement and community engagement, ensuring that all SEL students are ready for kindergarten. The Center is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the nation’s leading organization of early childhood professionals. For more information, visit www.scottdale.org.