Early Childhood Funder Collaborative Meeting

Join us for an in-person conversation focused on the Children First Collective and the work underway to strengthen outcomes for children and families across our region. Together, we’ll take a closer look at progress to date, share lessons emerging from this early phase, and explore where momentum is building—and where opportunities remain.

The session will begin with lunch, a welcome, and time for member check-ins and updates. From there, we’ll move into a discussion featuring presentations on regional priorities, plans, and place-based initiatives connected to the Children First Collective.

There will be space for conversation and connection to reflect on shared priorities and exploring how funders can align resources and strategies to support what’s next.

Target Audience

This program is designed for members of Catalyst. If you are interested in Catalyst membership, please contact Melissa Leon.

Catalyst is committed to making our events accessible to everyone. Please let us know how we can help you fully participate by contacting Michele Silverthorn. 

Speakers

Courtney Baltiyskyy, MPA, Vice President of Policy & Advocacy, YMCA of San Diego County

Courtney builds collaboration with purpose and care to drive systems-level change. With nearly twenty years of experience in youth development in San Diego and abroad, she brings community-rooted insights to her work in public policy. Her focus includes expanding access to quality child care, strengthening youth services, and advancing environmental health. Throughout her career, Courtney has united partners across sectors to address community inequities, grounding her work in teamwork, creativity, and evidence-based decision-making. She leads the Children First Collective, serves on the Partnership for Children and Youth Board, is a Trustee of the High Tech High Foundation, and loves to sing songs with her Brownie Girl Scouts.

Erin Hogeboom, Director, San Diego for Every Child & Children First Collective

Erin Hogeboom was a key thought-partner in forming San Diego for Every Child and was named Director in 2019. With both local and national policy and practitioner experience, and a deep commitment to the health and happiness of children, helping to move San Diego for Every Child forward is a dream role for Hogeboom. She is also co-lead of Children First Collective.

Prior to joining San Diego for Every Child, Hogeboom managed the Feeding Kids Program for Feeding San Diego, and was Director of Strategic Partnerships for the national education non-profit, National Girls Collaborative Project. Hogeboom stays active in the San Diego community through serving as San Diego Leadership Alliance Board Co-President after completing the organization’s Fellows Institute in 2015.

Born and raised in California, Hogeboom attended San Diego State University, and has a degree in International Security and Conflict Resolution. She also has a Master’s degree in Global Affairs from New York University.

Alison Ohle, Executive Director, Diamond Educational Excellence Partnership (DEEP)

A passionate advocate for equity and a pragmatic leader, Allison is a first-generation college graduate with a Bachelor’s in Psychology from UC Santa Cruz and a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School. It was her earlier work as a Teach for America corps member in New York City’s public schools and a founding teacher at KIPP Bridge College Prep in Oakland, CA that led Allison to graduate study: frustrated by the limited impact of one school, she set out to learn how to think about the success and scalability of thriving systems.

Allison’s work is rooted in the recognition that talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not. She leads with authenticity and seeks practical solutions to one of our most challenging problems: ensuring that high quality opportunities are available to all communities. Formerly a Senior Leader at High Tech High and the Founding Executive Director of KIPP San Diego, Allison has broad experience driving strategy, designing systems, and building teams. Allison’s role at DEEP is to build on the success and strength of the organization’s last 10 years to deepen the impact of the research-based theory of change that drives that work. Never afraid of hard decisions or discomfort, she seeks to build frameworks and adjust mindsets so that public education and democracy can deliver on its promise.