Liza Sullivan is currently the Executive Director of The Alliance for Early Childhood, a community-based organization in the northern suburbs of Chicago which provides programs and support for parents and professionals who teach and care for our young children. She began her professional career in northern California as an elementary education classroom teacher, with an interest in Whole Language, Reading Recovery, differentiated instruction, and parental involvement. Liza returned to her native Chicago and joined Chicago Children’s Museum (CCM) where, for five years, she was Manager and Director of Student and Educator Programs, developing on-site and off-site programs for both students and area elementary teachers. For three years, Liza served as CCM’s Assistant Vice President of Education, overseeing the museum’s daily operations, as well as internal and community-based programs that reached over a quarter of a million children and educators per year. As part of her advocacy of “free play” and “nature play,” pedagogical movements gaining popularity throughout the country, Liza has authored several articles and blogs, and presented at local and national conferences. She was the co-founder of ThroughPlay, an early childhood educational resource, which supports the facilitation of innovative play experiences and the utilization of Chicago’s natural environment to educate young children. She also was the Assistant Director of Continuing Education at Erikson Institute, designing in-person and online programs for adult learners.