Anamarie A. Whitaker

Dr. Anamarie Auger Whitaker (she/her) is an assistant professor of early care and education policy in the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Delaware. Her research focuses on how early care and education (ECE) systems support program quality improvement efforts and how ECE program components promote children’s development. Specifically, she is interested in understanding how ECE policies at the local, state, and federal level influence ECE programs, classroom practices and quality, and children’s school readiness.

Her recent research examines the effect of preschool curricula on teachers’ instructional practices, such as the amount, type, and quality of academic instruction provided, and children’s academic and social emotional development. Additionally, she is seeking to understand how ECE systems can best provide quality improvement supports, like professional development opportunities, to early childhood educators, and whether and how those supports are related to program quality and children’s development.

Email: awhit@udel.edu