Ceil Zalkind is the former President/CEO of Advocates for Children of New Jersey.  Her 25 years in leadership roles at ACNJ have helped produce key policy advances in child welfare, early care and education and health care in New Jersey. She has led important coalitions such as the Early Care and Education Coalition and the New Jersey BUILD initiative that have advanced high-quality early care and education in the state.

Senator Ruiz is currently the New Jersey Senate Majority Leader.  She serves on several Committees, including Legislative Oversight, Joint Budget Oversight, Economic Justice and Equal Employment, and Budget and Appropriations.  She has spearheaded countless initiatives in early childhood on behalf of children and families in the state.

Junius Williams is a nationally recognized attorney, musician, educator and independent thinker who has been at the forefront of the Civil Rights and Human Rights Movements in this country for decades. He is a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Economic Research and Policy in Washington DC; Community Fellow at the Newark Public Library; and has been named the Official Newark Historian by Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. He is also the host of the podcast, Everything’s Political, which examines social issues and activism in the 21st century.