Senior Director; New Jersey

Provides senior leadership in equitable early childhood systems building across local, state, federal contexts. 

Aressa Coley is a Senior Director at Afton Partners. Her career is dedicated to empowering leaders to solve their most complex programs, systems, and process challenges. Motivated by the belief that all children and families should have equitable access to the programs and services they need to thrive, Aressa’s expertise prioritizes solutions that dismantle systemic inequities for historically marginalized populations. Aressa’s expertise supports states in developing robust early childhood and education systems that champion equity, enhance program effectiveness, foster cross-sector coherence, and ensure sustainability to support the best outcomes for children and families. Her work catalyzes systems change through strategic planning, advisory board facilitation, stakeholder engagement, landscape analysis, policy guidance, and systems-building initiatives that prioritize the holistic development of children and families. 

Aressa has collaborated with over a dozen states to build their capacity to enhance and fortify their early childhood systems. Prior to joining Afton, she led, California’s Preschool Development Grants (Planning and Implementation), California’s Master Plan for Early Learning and Care, and facilitated California’s Early Childhood Policy Council. The California initiatives collectively revolutionized the state’s approach to childcare, universal pre-K, compensation models, workforce development, integrated data systems, funding mechanisms, and cross-sector governance, imprinting a lasting legacy on California’s early childhood landscape.

At Afton, Aressa drives meaningful systems change by fostering inclusive stakeholder and community engagement, gathering and analyzing data with care, and sharing insights through clear, impactful storytelling. She prioritizes amplifying the voices of those most affected or historically marginalized, ensuring their perspectives are central to the conversation.

Aressa’s consulting leadership roles include:

• Providing strategic support to inform the design and implementation of a new state Department of Early Childhood that equitably centers the needs of families and prioritizes racial equity.
• Facilitating a governor-appointed advisory committee charged with making meaning of external stakeholder engagement and providing recommendations to the state to inform an agency transition process. 
• Leading internal agency staff and external stakeholder engagement to co-design equitable solutions and inform the design and implementation of a new Department of Early Childhood.
• Providing strategic support to a state agency to analyze their existing Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) state plan, convene stakeholders across the state to inform modifications to the plan, and provide recommendations to strengthen the state plan and ensure its compliance with federal statutory requirements.