Caitlin McLean

Director of Multi-State and International Programs

As Director of Multistate & International Programs, Caitlin oversees cross-state early care and education (ECE) workforce policy projects and technical assistance to state-level stakeholders looking to improve their policies to prepare, support, and compensate early educators.

Caitlin brings 15 years of research experience in early care and education policy and systems. Her expertise includes qualitative and comparative studies, federal and state policy, and early childhood workforce needs related to compensation and economic security.

Caitlin earned a Ph.D. in Social Policy from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.

In her free time, Caitlin enjoys reading and talking to her cats.

Publications by Caitlin McLean

52 Ways Federal Actions Hurt Early Childhood Educators in 2025

February 9, 2026 • Brief • By Sophia Anderson, Arabella Bloom, Ilse Guardado, Leah Gutierrez , Caitlin McLean, Elena Montoya, Silvia Muñoz, Penelope Whitney and Shengwei Sun

This brief was generously supported with funding from the Heising-Simons Foundation and the Bainum Family Foundation. The early care and education (ECE) workforce is qualified, experienced, multilingual, and…

Advancing Early Educator Compensation: Minnesota’s Collaborative Effort

February 4, 2026 • Case Study • By Hyeonjeong Lee, Silvia Muñoz and Caitlin McLean

This report was generously supported by the Early Educator Investment Collaborative (The Collaborative). This case study looks at how Minnesota has continued sustaining compensation initiatives for its early…

Immigration Policies Harm the Early Childhood Workforce and the Communities They Serve

April 22, 2025 • Brief • By Silvia Muñoz and Caitlin McLean

This brief was generously supported with a grant from the Bainum Family Foundation. Since Inauguration Day, January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump has issued a series of Executive…

It’s (Almost) 2025: Will the U.S. Finally Fund a Child Care System That Values Women?

November 18, 2024 • Blog • By Caitlin McLean and Penelope Whitney

Have you heard? Vice President-elect J.D. Vance has an idea to fix child care: ask “grandma or grandpa” or “an aunt or uncle” to “help out…

Designing a Wage Increase Pilot: A Framework for Supporting Early Educators in Contra Costa County

November 13, 2024 • Report • By Anna Powell, Caitlin McLean and Abby Copeman Petig

The pilot design project was funded by First 5 Contra Costa. Guaranteed income (GI) pilots are increasing in popularity in cities and counties nationwide to improve compensation for…

Early Childhood Workforce Index 2024

October 8, 2024 • Report • By Caitlin McLean, Lea J.E. Austin, Anna Powell, Sophia Anderson, Yoonjeon Kim, Jenna Knight, Silvia Muñoz and Marisa Schlieber