Maki Park
Maki Park was Senior Advisor for Early Childhood Education and Care at MPI's National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy, where her work focused on issues affecting Dual Language Learners (DLLs) and immigrant families in early childhood systems. Additionally, she provided technical assistance to state and local actors, supporting their efforts to work collaboratively across local communities to address program quality and access issues facing immigrant and refugee families in home visiting, child care, and pre-kindergarten systems.
Previously, Ms. Park worked as Director of Outreach and Program Manager at WorldTeach, based at Harvard's Center for International Development, where she oversaw recruiting and admissions operations and managed the organization's program in Guyana. She has also worked as an education consultant in Malawi and served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Turkmenistan.
Ms. Park holds a master's in international education policy from Harvard University's Graduate School of Education, and earned her bachelor's degree with a double major in French and government with a concentration in international relations from Cornell University. She also practices as a clinical mental health counselor.
Explore Content by Maki Park
Showing 21-27 of 27 total results
New Opportunities? ESSA and Its Implications for Dual Language Learners and ECEC Workforce Development
New federal funds under the Every Student Succeeds Act can support Dual Language Learners, but immigrant early childhood workers still face wage gaps and barriers to training.
Dual Language Learners: A National Demographic and Policy Profile
Dual Language Learners (DLLs) make up 32 percent of young children nationally. The U.S. and 30 state fact sheets here offer a sociodemographic sketch of the DLL population.
Quality for Whom? Supporting Diverse Children and Workers in Early Childhood Quality Rating and Improvement Systems
Early childhood rating systems risk marginalizing culturally diverse providers and may drive out the workers best positioned to serve the growing U.S. child population with immigrant parents.
State Sociodemographic Portraits of Immigrant and U.S.-Born Parents of Young Children
State-level data reveal wide variation in immigrant parent populations, with implications for how states design early childhood and workforce programs under federal workforce and education laws.
Serving Immigrant Families Through Two-Generation Programs: Identifying Family Needs and Responsive Program Approaches
Immigrant families need two-generation programs, but limited English proficiency and federal performance rules require tailored approaches that are unsupported by current funding.
Immigrant and Refugee Workers in the Early Childhood Field: Taking a Closer Look
Immigrant workers fill nearly one-fifth of U.S. early childhood jobs but cluster in lower-skilled roles, mismatched with the language needs of the immigrant children they serve.
Immigrant Parents and Early Childhood Programs: Addressing Barriers of Literacy, Culture, and Systems Knowledge
Immigrant parents of young U.S. children face language and literacy barriers, but cuts to adult education have left early childhood programs without partners to address them.
