Elsa Jones

ECPC Consultant

Elsa Elisabeth Jones is a Child Development Specialist and Advocate with 37 years of broad-ranging experience. Ms. Jones is the Project Director for the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood Lab School Investments Initiative for CT State Colleges and Universities (CSCU). She serves as a Commissioner for the National Association of Young Children’s (NAEYC) Accreditation of Early Childhood Higher Education Programs.

Ms. Jones’ career started as a Head Start lead teacher and center director. An Independent Consultant since 1986, she provides training, mentoring, coaching, and professional development for state-funded and private early education programs (center-based and family child care), state, regional and national organizations. Her areas of specialization include birth to five development, diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and cultural competency, honoring families as their children’s first teachers and advocates, strengthening family-staff-community partnerships, developmentally appropriate practice, intentional teaching, anti-bias education/curriculum, assessment of child progress, team building, and reflective supervision. She provides technical assistance to early learning programs seeking NAEYC accreditation/reaccreditation. She serves as the education consultant for six Connecticut child development centers, a Board member of the CT Association for the Education of Young Children (CTAEYC), and a Board Member of the New Haven LULAC Head Start/Early Head Start program.

From August 2012 to April 2022, Ms. Jones was employed with Post University (Waterbury, CT) and held a variety of positions which included the Program Chair of Early Childhood Education (ECE), Professor of the Practice, and Assistant Professor. She is most proud of her leadership role in the initial NAEYC accreditation of the Associate in ECE and Bachelor of Child Studies degree programs. Additional hallmarks of Ms. Jones’ career include: Project Director for the Hartford Women’s League Child Development Center’s Children’s Defense Fund Summer Freedom School®, Federal Early Head Start/Head Start Program Reviewer, Assistant Researcher on national, longitudinal research projects with Columbia University Teachers College and Yale University Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy, Research Consultant for the National Parent Leadership Institute, Administrator for the Help Me Grow National Center of the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center (supported by the Kellogg Foundation), and Program Associate for the Brighter Futures Initiative of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

Ms. Jones earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Wellesley College and a Master of Arts degree from the Tufts University Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study. She is a licensed Basic, Toning and Aqua Zumba® instructor. Mother of two young adults, she cherishes her role as their lifelong nurturer, educator and advocate. She is the fourth generation of civil rights activists in her family. Ms. Jones is a passionate voice for high quality early childhood education, diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice, and authentic family-staff partnerships.