SANDRA DUNCAN NAMED PRESIDENT OF HIGHREACH LEARNING Distinguished Publisher And Educator Promoted To Top Post As HighReach Learning Embarks On Major Expansion Plans
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Charlotte, North Carolina (March 21, 2005) - HighReach Learning has promoted Sandra Duncan, Ed.D, to the position of President, effective immediately. The announcement was made by Steve Carson, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Carson-Dellosa Publishing and President of Cookie Jar Education. HighReach Learning is a sister company to Carson-Dellosa Publishing and part of the Educational Division of The Cookie Jar Company.
Duncan joined HighReach Learning in December 2004 as Vice President, where she was responsible for such corporate areas as product development, sales and marketing and corporate branding. Possessing an extensive career in educational publishing, marketing and teaching, Duncan takes the helm of HighReach Learning to will guide the company's continued expansion as a preeminent educational publisher.
The "Summer Bridge Activities" workbook series was created by Michele Van Leeuwen, at the time a working mother with a seven year old son. After reading a number of studies, she became aware that with a lack of stimulation, there is a notable erosion of children's mental acuity and a tendency to forget much of what they learned during the school year. Unfortunately, despite her extensive research, she also found that there were no commercially available materials that addressed this problem.
"Since joining the company last year, Sandra has proven to be a highly effective, focused and creative executive. A respected educator and an educational industry leader, Sandra is an outstanding executive to take HighReach Learning to the next levels of success as an educational publisher," said Carson."
Prior to HighReach Learning, Duncan served as Publisher of "Early Childhood Today" Magazine. Duncan began her 7-year tenure with the highly regarded publication as National Advertising Director. She was promoted to Associate Publisher before being elevated to Publisher. Prior to Scholastic, Duncan served as the Publisher of Early Childhood News, a prestigious national early childhood education journal. Duncan joined Early Childhood News after heading up Corporate Care Associates, her own educational consultancy and marketing organization specializing in providing childcare services and programs to the Indiana and Illinois health and corporate communities. Duncan began her career in education in 1967 as a Kindergarten teacher, a position she held for ten years.
Duncan received her B.S. in Elementary Education with Kindergarten Endorsement from Western Michigan University and an M.S. in Elementary Education from Indiana University. She conducted postgraduate work at the University of Chicago in Reading Acquisition and Early Childhood and earned her Doctorate of Education from Nova Southeastern University.
She is a member of the Advisory Board of the University of Wisconsin Stout's Early Childhood Education Program Committee; a Board Member of the National AfterSchool Association; a former Board Member of the Indiana Association for the Education of Young Children (AEYC) and Founding President of the Lakepointe AEYC. A frequent keynote speaker at organizational events and conferences, Duncan is also the author of numerous articles on early childhood education and contributed the Marketing section for "The NAC Credential."
About HighReach Learning:
HighReach Learning, Inc. is committed to creating high-quality, developmentally appropriate learning materials that allow early childhood teachers to easily facilitate a creative, integrated, hands-on learning experience for the whole child. The company's goal is to enhance the development of readiness skills, encourage a love for learning, and promote family involvement in the learning process. HighReach Learning and Carson-Dellosa Publishing are the leading educational companies in the Cookie Jar Education Group.
MEDIA CONTACT: SSA Public Relations (For Cookie Jar) Steve Syatt - (818) 501-0700 Elliott Chang - (212) 679-4750
