Management Team
Patty Siegel, Executive Director
For more than 40 years, Patty Siegel has been a tireless supporter, advocate, and mentor on all issues related to children, child care, and family support services. Her passion for the development and delivery of quality, accessible, affordable child care services led her to found one of the nation’s first child care resource and referral agencies, Children’s Council (previously known as Childcare Switchboard) in San Francisco. Patty's work led to California’s legislation providing state funding for child care resource and referral services (R&Rs) in every county of the state.
When the statewide California Child Care Resource & Referral Network (Network) was formed ini 1980, Patty began what would be a 30-year commitment as Executive Director.
As Executive Director, Patty is an active participant in shaping state and federal policy that impacts children and families, and has been creative in the development of diverse and innovative programs, including the Child Care Initiative Project, Parent Voices, Growing, Learning, Caring, and a host of others -- many of which have been shared at the national level.
Patty has been honored with numerous awards and proclamations, and her tireless and passionate commitment to children has made her a frequent speaker at conferences.
Tom Calhoun, Chief Financial Officer
BA Political Science University of California - Riverside
MBA University of California - Riverside
Tom Calhoun is the Chief Financial Officer of the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network. He oversees and directs the financial, human resource, IT and administrative functions of the organization. He collaborates with management of the various programs including membership services/public policy, research, Parent Voices, Trustline and California Child Care Initiative Project staff to provide support and a high degree of accountability and control to the organization.
Tom brings over 30 years of financial and operating experience, having worked in the private, public and nonprofit sectors. He started his career with Stryco Manufacturing Company working in their accounting department, and subsequently took a position as a contract manager working for the city and county of San Francisco administering contracts for the Clean Water Program, a division of the Department of Public Works. In 1989 Tom decided that he wanted to direct his efforts toward pursuing a career in the nonprofit sector, beginning his career with California Child Care R&R Network.
Tom serves on the audit committee of the Bay Area Council and is a member of a number of professional organizations. He lives in San Francisco with his wife and three children.
Ana Fernandez-Leon, Manager CCIP
BA Universidad Complutense - Madrid
MA University of Louisville, KY
Ana has been an employee of the California Child Care Resource & Referral Network since 2006. Her involvement with Resource & Referral and Early Childhood Education began in 1992, as a volunteer for a local family child care association. As a Project/Program Manager at a local R&R agency, she coordinated the Exempt Provider Training Project, a successful team effort to recruit, train, and support license-exempt providers, a pioneer project at the time. She also managed the Child Care Initiative Project and the California Child & Adult Care Food Program
Ana has taught Early Childhood Education courses, in English and Spanish, at several community colleges in the Bay Area.
Mary Ignatius, Statewide Organizer
BSW Rutgers University, NJ
MSW Temple University, PA
Mary Ignatius is the Statewide Organizer of Parent Voices (PV), a Network project and parent-led grassroots organization fighting to make quality child care accessible and affordable for all families.
As the Statewide Organizer since 2005, Mary has infused new and existing Parent Voices chapters with her infectious energy, and sparked expanded interest and enthusiasm in the goals of Parent Voices. As a young mother and a college-educated woman of color, Mary is committed to social and economic justice, and brings passion and inspiration to her peers.
Mary has been a leader in the Marguerite Casey Foundation-funded Equal Voice for America’s Families and the Family Values @ Work Consortium, a network of 14 state coalitions advocating for economic security, paid sick days, and policies that value working families.
Prior to joining the Network, Mary worked with the Kensington Welfare Rights Union, Community Legal Services in Philadelphia, and Project SURVIVE, and has been an instructor at City College of San Francisco.
Carlise King, Research Director
BA Psychology University of California - Berkeley
MA Social PsychologySan Francisco State University
As Research Director, Carlise manages all primary and secondary research activities, and provides technical assistance and training to member agencies on data collection, database systems, and statistics relating to Network research projects. She also manages the Network’s Statewide Data Standardization Project, which produces the biennial California Child Care Portfolio, a county-by-county statistical report about child care costs, supply, and demand throughout the state.
Cindy Mall, Senior Program Manager
BA Developmental and Experimental Psychology University of California - Santa Barbara
MS Child Development University of California - Davis
Cindy came to the Network in 1987 as Office Manager, but within five years was developing and managing TrustLine. Cindy also coordinates the Network's statewide Annual Conference held for the past 20 years at the Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove. Prior to working at the Network, Cindy was a preschool teacher, a recreation leader for children and adults with developmental and physical challenges, and the director of a before- and after-school program.
A mother of two, Cindy is active in PTA, and chairs the Valley Vista School Fundraising Committee.
