Dr. Hawani Negussie

Dr. Hawani Negussie is the Chair and Associate Professor of UMass Global Early Childhood Education. She has been in the field of Early Childhood Care and Education for over twenty years holding various positions in the birth-21 (PK-16) educational settings. Her practice, approach, and global perspectives are informed by her wide range of experiences, education, and training with leading institutions such as UCLA Early Intervention Program, UCLA Children’s Hospital, Early Childhood Foundation at Cedar Sinai Medical Center, and California State University Long Beach-Department of the College of Education.

Dr. Negussie offers expertise in Early Childhood Education, Child Development, Infant Mental Health, Indigenous Education Systems, International Research, Program Development, and Administration. She has demonstrated knowledge in transformational leadership, statewide program/project oversight, organizational management, teacher training, and assessment/outcome including ECE curriculum and instructional design. She has provided strategic and operational leadership in implementing effective early learning program standards at the state and international levels. Her extensive work with children and families from various backgrounds and settings, locally and globally, with a focus on those from systemically neglected communities, continues to influence her outlook on addressing the compounding challenges children and families face due to inequitable opportunities. Her research interest includes an examination of indigenous knowledge in early learning environments, implications of aid imposed by global education policies, and using culture as a central strategy in pre-primary education.

Her research has been published in international journals focused on leadership and policy. Dr. Negussie is the founder and executive director of Early Childhood Education Ethiopia, a nonprofit organization broadly engaged in elevating early learning, child development, and equitable education in rural communities in Ethiopia.