Michelle Barnea, RN, MSEd began her career as a Pediatric Nurse after receiving her degree from Duke University. She then attended Bank Street Graduate School of Education where she received her Masters in Education, specifically focused in Infant and Parent Development. Michelle has been working with young children and families for more than 30 years in hospital, home and center settings. For the past 20 years, she has been an independent consultant, providing on-site professional development support to Head Start, Early Head Start, Early Childhood, and Family Child Care providers as well as workshops at local, state, and national Conferences.

A member of NAEYC since 1994, Michelle served as VP of Professional Development for NJAEYC for 10 years. She is currently a Co-facilitator of NAEYC’s Early Childhood Consultants and Authors Interest Forum, as well as a Consulting Editor for Young Children. As an Affiliate Advisory Council member, Michelle is excited to support the work of NAEYC and of early childhood professionals.