Elizabeth Bonbright Thompson is the Executive Director of the Washington State Child Care Resource & Referral Network, a statewide private, nonprofit organization.  She has held this position since April, 1992.  In this capacity, she has become a knowledgeable and effective voice for child care resource & referral (R&R) and other aspects of early childhood and school age care and education in Washington State and across the nation.  She works closely with each of the eighteen, community-based, nonprofit child care resource & referral agencies across the state and has a strong grasp of the diversity of issues impacting each community.  She has demonstrated a unique ability to provide appropriate technical assistance, link communities together to share creative ideas, and offer leadership on public policy issues relevant to local R&R programs and to the families and providers they serve.

Ms. Thompson brings an impressive background of professional experience.  She has worked extensively with all levels of government, business leaders and community-based organizations.  In addition to providing technical assistance to the community-based child care resource & referral programs, Ms. Thompson has designed, developed and managed a broad range of innovative projects.  During her sixteen years in this position, she has played a lead role in leveraging over $22 million in new public and private dollars for the child care and early learning system (beyond funding for core R&R services) in Washington State.

Under her leadership, the Washington State Child Care Resource & Referral Network has improved the quality of care for children all across Washington State by serving as a quality leader in statewide public policy conversations.  Her leadership has resulted in the expansion of R&R core services for families, caregivers and communities across the state including the creation of numerous acclaimed curricula used by the local R&R programs in their trainings for child care providers.  In addition, Ms. Thompson has successfully implemented a comprehensive child care provider college scholarship program in Washington State, WA Scholarships for Child Care Professionals.

Ms. Thompson has become a valued voice on child care policy at the national level. On March 15, 2002, she testified before the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on the role of child care resource & referral in supporting and nurturing a strong child care system and the impact of federal dollars on improving quality child care environments.  In addition, she has authored and published many reports and articles which have received national distribution and recognition.  She served for over nine years on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) and among other leadership roles, was President of the Board for two years.  She  currently serves as Chair of the NACCRRA Public Policy Committee.

Prior to her current position with the WA State CCR&R Network, she served for nine years with the California State Senate as a Principle Consultant where she drafted several notable laws, including the award winning California Child Care Ombudsman Program and SB 65, California’s highly successful school dropout prevention program.

Ms. Thompson holds a BA in Psychology from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut.

Ms. Thompson actively represents child care resource & referral agencies (and the families and child care providers they serve) on numerous boards and committees at the state and national levels.

State:

• BUILD Initiative Steering Committee  (Member 2003 – Present)
• Healthy Child Care Washington (Partner 1996 – Present)
• Kids Matter (SEECS Grant) Steering Committee (Member 2003 – Present)
• Family, Friends & Neighbors Leadership Team (Member 2004 – Present)
• WA Afterschool Network Steering Committee (Member 2006- Present)
• Head Start-State Collaboration Project Advisory Committee (Member 2002 – Present)
• Leadership Council for Quality Care and Education (Formerly the Child Care Coordinating Committee) (Member September 2004 – June 2005 when it was officially dissolved)    
• Executive Committee (Member September 2004 – June 2005 when it dissolved)
• Child Care Coordinating Committee  (Member 1992 –  September 2004)
• Child Care Coordinating Committee Public Policy Subcommittee, (Chair, 1993 - 2004)
• Child Care Coordinating Committee Systems Subcommittee (Member, 1993 - 2004)
• Child Care Coordinating Committee Select Committee on Licensing, (Past Chair, 1992)
• The Collaborative for Early Care and Education and Afterschool Programs                                              (Member 2003 – 2006)
• WA State Infant/Toddler Initiative Advisory Committee  (Member 2003 – Present)
• Early Childhood Education Coalition Advisory Committee (Member 2003 – 2006)
• League of Education Voters Early Childhood Advisory Committee (Member 2003 – Present)
• Child Care Works for Washington, (Past Chair 1995-1996, Member 1993 - 2003)
• The Children's Budget Coalition  (Member 1994 – Present)
• The Children’s Alliance   (Member 1992 – Present)

National:

• Board of Directors, National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) (1994-2002) & (2007-Present)
• Appointed to the Board of Directors as Chair of Public Policy Committee (March 2007-Present)
• Elected member of the Public Policy Committee (March 2002 – 2006)
• NACCRRA Reauthorization Workgroup (Chair, January 2002 – 2004)
• Immediate Past-President  (March 2001 – March 2002)
• President  (March 1999 – March 2001)
• President-Elect & Annual Symposium Chair (October 1997 – February 1999)
• Vice President of the Board & Chair of Public Policy (1995-1997)
• Fundraising Committee, (Chair, 1994-1995)
• Strengthening Families United National Advisory Board (January 2008 – Present)
• Eco-Healthy Childcare National Advisory Committee (March 2008 – Present)
• State Contact, National Women’s Law Center (2002 – Present)
• Advisory Board Member, Child Care Action Campaign   (1998 – 2000)
• State Child Care Contact, Children's Defense Fund (1993 - Present)
• State Contact, Families & Work Institute’s national I Am Your Child public engagement campaign
• Executive Committee Member, Every Child Matters, Washington State Chapter (January 2004 – November 2004)