Location: East St. Louis, IL

Availability: Flexible

Travel Area: Flexible

Trainer Bio: Shameka Brown, MS.Ed., is a disability coordinator for Head Start, a Professional Development Specialist with the Early Intervention Training Program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Shameka develops and facilitates evidence-informed professional development related to service coordination, child development, family engagement, and social emotional development. She holds a B.S. in Special Education, M.A. in Educational Leadership, and certification in Infant Early Childhood Mental Health. Shameka’s journey has spanned over 17 years as a teacher, childcare director, service coordinator, child development specialist, an adjunct professor, and professional development consultant for the Illinois Training Network, as well as an Illinois Early Childhood mental health consultant. Her professional interests include empowering caregivers to advocate for their children and families, promoting and supporting parent-child relationships, understanding trauma informed care, infant mental health, social emotional well-being and their connection to family well-being, and advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion to ensure all families have access to necessary resources and support.