We welcome Ben Baumfalk and Elizabeth Lopez Everett to the First Five Nebraska team. They bring valuable skills and insight to our work to see that all Nebraska children begin kindergarten with the experiences they need to become successful students and productive citizens.
Policy Research Analyst Ben Baumfalk is a lifelong Lincoln resident who comes to us from the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska Omaha.
He has worked professionally in the education arena in various capacities, including substitute teaching, supervising before and after-school programs and as a research and evaluation specialist for the Nebraska Department of Education. Ben became interested in early childhood because of the wealth of mounting evidence about the importance of the first eight years of a child’s life. “I’m excited to take what has been learned through research and practice to inform effective early childhood policy in Nebraska,” he said. “This is a great opportunity to have a real and lasting impact.”
Ben is pursuing a Ph.D. in Quantitative, Qualitative and Psychometric Methods at UNL. He has an M.A. in Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education and a B.A. in Psychology.
Ben and his wife, Moani, have two daughters, Eva age 8 and Nola, age 9.
A recent transplant to Nebraska, Policy Associate Elizabeth Lopez Everett has more than five years of public policy experience working on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., for Senator John McCain and the Senate Armed Services Committee. In these roles, Elizabeth worked on several pieces of legislation, including the annual National Defense Authorization Act, the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act and the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act. “I’m excited to join the amazing team at First Five Nebraska, and plan to leverage my experience to create lasting policy to positively impact Nebraska’s children at risk,” she said.
Elizabeth received an M.B.A. from George Washington University and a B.A. in Political Science from Vanderbilt University.
She and her husband, Rick, live in Lincoln.
