Staff Spotlight: Claudia Quinonez

Years at Children’s Council:

15 years

How I contribute to the success of Children’s Council: 

I activate the organization’s strategic plan by bringing leadership together to align, strategize, and maintain ongoing communication and transparency. I advance strategic initiatives, and oversee research and evaluation strategies so that we can easily articulate our impact and improve our services.

Background:

I hold a B.A. in Public Relations and Communications, and certifications in Dialogue Education, Design Thinking and Project Management. I began my career in the nonprofit field over 21 years ago, first serving families and children in San Salvador, Central America before moving to San Francisco.

Proudest moment: 

There have been many proud moments – I started working at Children’s Council in an entry-level position 15 years ago and I am now in an executive role after serving as a Resource & Referral Program Manager, Director of Community Impact & Innovation, and Senior Director of Research, Data and Evaluation.

This is a testament to the organization’s investments in professional development and employee career growth. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to innovate our reach to families with young children by redesigning a user and mobile-friendly Child Care Finder. Most recently, I established of our Research, Data and Evaluation department, which is a catalyst to advancing our organization to be more data-driven.

What inspires you each day:

 My children – seeing their vulnerability, innocence, and thirst to learn and grow, inspires me to push through challenging moments, continue to be a learner and to approach life with a fresh and positive perspective.

Favorite thing about working at Children’s Council:

Through our data, client stories, and efforts, I get to see firsthand the results of our amazing work. It’s fascinating to see from a balcony view how every employee’s contributions come together to provide an impactful result.

Greatest challenge:

Given that there is not enough child care financial assistance to serve all San Francisco families, in addition to having a low supply of infant and toddler child care programs, it’s challenging to see many families “waiting” to get a basic family need to be met.

What you would do with a large donation: 

Increase the supply of infant and toddler care by offering financial resources for new and seasoned child care businesses that offer quality infant and toddler care so that they can maintain a thriving business and gain a livable wage.