Ms. Burnim, a kindergarten and first grade teacher for more than a decade, has been acknowledged for her hands–on commitment to teaching excellence as the United States National Teacher of the Year for 2006, and by being named as one of 2011’s “28 Most Influential Black Women” by Essence magazine. She brings to ABCmouse.com a deep and forward–thinking understanding of the role that technology should play in early childhood education. In addition to strategic curriculum planning, Ms. Burnim collaborates in the design of site content and activities that are developmentally appropriate, that incorporate effective teaching strategies, and that help build a strong foundation of essential concepts and skills important for early childhood learners.

Dr. Bollard is a professional lexicographer with more than 25 years of experience. In addition to ten years as an editor at Merriam Webster’s, Dr. Bollard has served as Senior Editor of Cambridge Dictionary of American English (2007); Editor of The Scholastic Student Thesaurus (2002) and Children’s Thesaurus (1998); Contributing Editor of The New Oxford American Dictionary (2001); and Consulting Editor for Webster’s New World Thesaurus (1996). Dr. Bollard has been of great assistance in the preparation of ABCmouse.com’s glossary.

“Mr. Tomecek is the Executive Director and founder of Science Plus, Inc. Steve began his professional career as a geologist specializing in geomorphology and soils. He served as the Associate Director for the Science Museum of Long Island and as the Science Program Supervisor for the New York Hall of Science. He has also served as a writer and science consultant for the National Geographic Society, Scholastic, Inc., and Chelsea House. In the past he has written and has helped to develop web sites for Discovery Communications, the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Los Alamos Labs, and the Jason Academy.

For eight years Steve was the on–air host for the New York Kids show on WNYC radio in New York City and was the writer and star of Dr. Dad’s Ph–3, an Emmy award winning television series produced by Louisiana Public Broadcasting. Steve’s television credits also include serving as the Science Educational Consultant for 3–2–1 Classroom Contact produced by Children’s Television Workshop and as a curriculum specialist for both Newton’s Apple and Scholastic’s Magic School Bus.

Steve has written over 45 nonfiction books for both teachers and kids. His very first book, Bouncing & Bending Light, won the 1996 American Institute of Physics science writing award, and he has written 6 books for the highly acclaimed Jump Into Science series published by National Geographic.”

With over two decades of experience in early childhood education, as well as a PhD in curriculum development, Dr. Palacios is a pioneer in the field of dual language learning, and is co–founder and past vice–chairperson of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), an organization that has certified more than 92,000 teachers in the United States during the past 20 years. Dr. Palacios is engaged in strategic curriculum planning for ABCmouse.com and in the design of age–appropriate site content and activities that effectively teach essential concepts and skills to young children. In addition, she is involved in the development of site content that supports English language learning.

Ms. Baecker has more than two decades of experience with several leading children’s educational publishers, including Scholastic, Inc. Throughout her career, Ms. Baecker has managed, edited, rewritten, and provided production services for numerous individual children’s books and series as well as parent’s and teacher’s guides, including the My First Steps to Reading series, Dr. Seuss and His Friends parent guides, Disney’s Wonderful World of Reading books, and the Clifford book series. Ms. Baecker’s expertise in children’s publishing helps ensure that our online books represent the best practices of editorial conventions for young readers.

Mr. O’Donnell brings years of experience in the field of children’s entertainment, including educational entertainment, to his role as a senior creative consultant to ABCmouse.com. Mr. O’Donnell was a leading creator of the award–winning PBS television series, Liberty’s Kids, voiced by well–known personalities, such as Warren Buffet, Walter Cronkite, Billy Crystal, Michael Douglas, Maria Shriver, Annette Bening, and Liam Neeson. He has also creatively contributed to such classic children’s shows as Madeline, Dennis the Menace, Strawberry Shortcake, and Where in the World Is Carmen San Diego.

Overseeing the coordination of our curriculum advisors and consultants is Dave Hendry, two–time winner of the George Foster Peabody Award for educational documentary production and winner of The Educational Press Association’s highest award for curriculum design. Mr. Hendry has served as Principal Investigator in two national U.S. Department of Education Professional Development projects and has directed/coordinated curriculum development activities for four National Science Foundation projects.