ACNJ Staff

Mary became President and CEO of ACNJ at the start of 2023 after becoming the vice president in 2003. She joined the organization in 1993 to head what is now known as ACNJ’s KidLaw Resource Center, which provides information on laws and legal processes affecting New Jersey children.

Mary’s primary policy areas include foster care, kinship care, children’s health, and more recently, juvenile justice. She has authored guides and articles on child welfare-related topics, including the Kinship Legal Guardianship Guide, and has represented ACNJ as amicus curiae before the NJ Supreme Court in several cases. Mary is a member of the New Jersey Children in Court Improvement Committee, the NJ Medical Assistance Advisory Council, the New Jersey Council for Juvenile Justice System Improvement and its School/Justice Partnership Subcommittee, and the NJ Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect. Recently, she was appointed Acting Co-Chair for the NJ Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect. She previously chaired the Child Welfare Section and the Pro Bono Committee of the New Jersey State Bar Association.

Prior to joining ACNJ in 1993, Mary practiced family law in New Jersey. She received both her J.D. and B.A. from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Nina Peckman works for ACNJ’s KidLaw Resource Center as a staff attorney, specializing in all aspects of education law and, as a member of the special education practitioners workgroup and the education law committee of the New Jersey Bar Association, takes part in education policy agendas. Fluent in Spanish and English, she primarily assists parents by explaining the law and helping them advocate for their children in school, including by reviewing and explaining school record and writing letters to school staff. Nina negotiates with school board attorneys, attends school meetings and State mediation with parents. Nina writes legal guides and fact sheets and provides workshops/trainings regarding education law to parents and professionals, including school staff, psychologists, social workers, healthcare providers, community-based organizations, Case Management Organization staff, child welfare workers, law guardians and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). Prior to joining ACNJ in 2006, Nina worked for the Community Health Law Project, providing legal representation to adults diagnosed with mental disabilities. Prior to that, she was general counsel to Engender Health, a non-profit organization whose mission was to improve woman and children’s health services in developing countries. Nina earned her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in 1985 and her B.A. from Rutgers College.

As Kids Count Coordinator, Alena is responsible for collecting, analyzing and organizing state, county, and city level data relating to the well-being of New Jersey’s children for ACNJ’s Kids Count publications. She earned a Master of Public Informatics degree with a concentration in environmental and health-use planning from Rutgers University. While in graduate school, Alena worked as an administrative assistant for the Office of Student and Academic Services at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. She obtained her B.A in Information Technology and Informatics from Rutgers University.

Prior to ACNJ, Jake worked alongside political candidates and nonprofits to elevate people-focused policies. He previously worked as a freelance policy researcher to support programmatic and policy efforts of healthcare organizations and served as the lead policy analyst on a number of political campaigns. Jake is also a former AP Government and Economics teacher from San Jose, California. He earned his MA in Politics from New York University to better advocate for kids like his students. He earned his BA in Rhetoric from University of California, Berkeley.

In 2023, ACNJ welcomed Winifred Smith-Jenkins as the Director of Early Learning Policy and Advocacy. With an impressive professional background spanning over two decades in managing three successful family-owned child care programs in northern New Jersey, Winifred brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to her role at ACNJ. Her expertise in child care and early learning, along with her extensive management experience, where she was responsible for leading approximately 100 employees, building relationships, managing commercial acquisition, construction, project management, flood mitigation, disaster preparedness, and community service initiatives, will prove invaluable in guiding ACNJ's policy work and overall operations.

Prior to her appointment as Director, Winifred was actively engaged in ACNJ's advocacy efforts, offering testimony, presenting on webinars, and meeting with public officials to effect change on a statewide level. Currently, as the leader of the early learning policy team, she works closely with key stakeholders to advance ACNJ's mission of ensuring affordable, quality early learning is accessible to all families in need. Winifred's proven track record of community involvement is extensive, having served on several committees, including the South Orange Maplewood School District Preschool Reopening Committee, the East Orange Preschool Advisory Council, and the former East Orange Mayoral Economic Development and Education Transition Team. She has also volunteered as a Summit Volunteer First Aid Squad member and served as a State of New Jersey Licensed Foster Parent and Certified Emergency Medical Technician.

Winifred is a member of several professional and national organizations, including the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the New Jersey Association for Infant Mental Health, Delta Sigma Theta, and Jack and Jill of America. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology, a Master of Science in Health Administration, and is currently pursuing a Doctoral degree in Higher Education. Her vast experience, deep commitment to child advocacy, and dedication to community involvement make her an invaluable addition to ACNJ's team of early learning policy experts.

Diane Dellanno, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, is a policy analyst and member of the early childhood team at ACNJ. Her primary role has been to develop an infant/toddler advocacy campaign to improve early learning policies, programs and funding for infants and toddlers in New Jersey. Diane has authored several issue briefs on topics related to infants and toddlers including: Out Of Reach, a look at the cost of quality child care in New Jersey and No Room For Babies, that examined the availability of infant-toddler child care in New Jersey; and Expensive, Frustrating and Scary: Parent Reveal the Realities of Finding Child Care for Babies in NJ. Diane has over 30 years’ experience in developing and implementing parenting education programs to assist parents in understanding how their children develop, foster positive parent-child relationships, support healthy child development and engage families in their child’s learning to ensure educational success. Prior to joining ACNJ in 2012, Diane served as a director of Early Childhood and Education Programs for Prevent Child Abuse – NJ. Diane received her B.A. from Montclair State University and her M.S.W. from Rutgers-The State University.

Hannah Korn-Heilner is the Outreach Coordinator at ACNJ, assisting the Early Learning Team by collecting stories from parents and providers, and helping to train advocates. She obtained her Master of Social Work with a concentration in Management and Policy from Rutgers University. Prior to graduate school, she worked at the New Jersey Community Development Corporation in Paterson, serving as the Assistant Director of a 21st Century Community Learning Center afterschool program at John F. Kennedy High School. She also completed a year of AmeriCorps service with the same organization. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Speech Language Pathology and Audiology from Ithaca College.

Miguelina Maldonado is returning to ACNJ after helping with our 2020 Census efforts. In her new role as Parent Engagement Manager, she will be helping us reach out to new advocates across the state, with a focus on the Spanish-speaking community. She holds both a B.A. in General Humanities and Social Science, as well as a certificate in Translation and Interpreting in Spanish from Montclair State University. Prior to her work at ACNJ, Miguelina dedicated 16 years to the Newark Public School system, most recently acting as their Community Engagement Specialist. In this role, she helped to address the concerns of community members and developed creative solutions for support conflict resolution for all parties involved. She also acted as a substitute teacher/attendance counselor for the district.

Cynthia Rice is an attorney and senior policy analyst on ACNJ’s early childhood team. Her responsibilities include identifying, monitoring, writing about and advocating for critical early childhood education issues, especially around preschool, child care and linking preschool to the early elementary years. Cynthia works closely with state leaders and legislators to help make children a top priority and often showcases New Jersey’s success in presentations around the country on these topics. Prior to joining ACNJ in 2002, Cynthia spent three years as an assistant district attorney in Bronx County, New York.  She earned a J.D. from Pace University School of Law and a B.S. from Georgetown University.

Aaliyah is the Campaign and Partner Engagement Coordinator at ACNJ. As an experienced communications facilitator, she supports the management of Strolling Thunder, the Pritzker Children's Initiative, and assists the Early Learning Team with additional campaigns and projects. In her role, she has streamlined internal communications and keeps the organization's networks frequently informed. Aaliyah graduated from Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Media Studies.

Eloisa Hernandez is part of ACNJ’s communications and outreach team, focusing primarily on the organization’s electronic communications, including its website and e-communications. Fluent in English and Spanish, she also assists with outreach tasks and other critical pieces, communicating ACNJ’s goals to key decision-makers, other advocates and the general public. Eloisa joined ACNJ in 1994 and holds a B.A. from Trenton State College, now the College of New Jersey.

Lana Lee manages ACNJ’s strategic communications, with the goal of expanding awareness and support for ACNJ’s policy agenda. She handles press inquiries and media events for ACNJ and uses video and social media to increase awareness of ACNJ’s activities and policy goals. In addition to tracking analytics of ACNJ’s website and social media presence, her work also involves graphic design and website development. Prior to joining ACNJ, Lana worked at the Office of the Public Advocate. She holds a B.A. from Douglass College, Rutgers University.

Antoinette Abdelmalek is an administrative assistant for ACNJ, assisting staff in various administrative duties. She is a native of Lebanon and is fluent in English, French and Arabic. Prior to joining ACNJ in 1982, she worked for the City of Newark in its Compensation, Rating and Inspection Bureau and for Societe Orientale de Publicite in Lebanon. She attended St. Vincent de Paul School, and is a graduate of the Franciscan Sisters in Egypt.

Beatriz Alcaraz is an administrative assistant for ACNJ and is a key part of the organization, assisting staff in a myriad of duties. She joined ACNJ in 2000. Beatriz is bilingual in English and Spanish. She is a graduate of Perth Amboy High School.

Mike is responsible for the accounting and financial functions of ACNJ. He comes from over 25 years in commercial, not-for-profit and consulting experience. At ACNJ, he is facilitating the mission and promoting the sustainability of the organization through internal, Board, and third-party reporting and strong accounting & financial management practices. Mike holds a B.S. in Econ. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania majoring in accounting and an M.B.A. from the N.Y.U. Stern School majoring in Finance and International Business.

Prudence Walters is the Director of Operations and has been with the organization since 2018. She is a first-generation college graduate in her family with a B.A. in Business Administration from Brooklyn College. With over a decade of experience in HR Management and Business Strategies, her primary role is to work closely with senior management in developing long-term operational strategies that help meet company objectives by overseeing the day-to-day operations of the office, ensuring that it runs efficiently so all members of the team have what they need to succeed.  In addition, Prudence also works closely with ACNJ board members to maintain connections between the Board of Directors, committees, and staff.

Prior to joining ACNJ, Prudence has worked with companies such as Planned Parenthood, Brooklyn Philharmonic, and Scholastic, Inc. Being a mother herself, she hopes to bring a personal touch to the agency's mission of child advocacy.