Katharine B. Stevens
Founder & President
Katharine Stevens is the founder and president of the Center on Child and Family Policy (CCFP). Prior to launching CCFP, she served for more than six years as a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), leading AEI’s early-childhood program.
Dr. Stevens’s analyses and commentary have been published in Early Learning Nation, Education Week, The Hill, HuffPost, Institute for Family Studies, Los Angeles Times, National Review, New York Daily News, New York Post, USA Today, US News & World Report, and The Wall Street Journal. Her publications include Renewing Childhood’s Promise: The History and Future of Federal Early Care and Education Policy; Does Pre-K Work?: The Research on Ten Early Childhood Programs—And What It Tells Us; and Still Left Behind: How America’s Schools Keep Failing Our Children.
Before joining AEI, Dr. Stevens founded and led Teachers for Tomorrow, one of the first teacher-apprenticeship programs in the United States, which recruited and trained teachers for New York City’s lowest-performing schools. She began her career in public education as a preschool teacher in New Haven, Connecticut, and St. Louis, Missouri.
She has a Ph.D. in education policy from Columbia University, an M.Ed. from Teachers College, an MBA from Columbia Business School, and a B.A. in US history from the University of Chicago.
Allison Gallagher
Associate Director
Allison Gallagher is the associate director of the Center on Child and Family Policy (CCFP). Prior to joining CCFP, Allison served as program director of Touching Heart — an award-winning nonprofit that helps children from 1st through 12th grades become compassionate philanthropic leaders in their communities — helping the organization raise over $2 million and leading its expansion throughout Northern Virginia, Maryland, and New York City.
Prior to working at Touching Heart, while raising her two young sons, Allison combined a passion for photography with her love of working with children to launch a successful child portrait business, along with running confidence-building photography workshops for women and children.
Previously, Allison served as the director of the American Association of Children’s Residential Centers (AACRC), planning AACRC’s annual national conference and overseeing the annual Call for Papers and journal publication. She also served as president of the John W Tolbert Elementary PTA in Loudoun County, Virginia, doubling parent and community donations to support the school.
Allison graduated from the University of Alabama with a BS in psychology, focusing on child development. She began her career as a preschool teacher in her hometown, Gulf Breeze, Florida. She now lives in Leesburg, Virginia with her sons and husband of 23 years.