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Meet the new director of Early Childhood Education Services

Christin Olson has been named the director of Early Childhood Education Services at Indiana University Bloomington, Assistant Vice Provost Julie Bauters announced. Olson officially began in the position Oct. 1.

Christy Olson.

“We are so pleased to welcome Christy into this new role after her many years of leadership with the Campus Children’s Center,” Bauters said. “Her efforts, alongside our previous director, Tim Dunnuck, were crucial in helping guide our child care centers through the pandemic. Christy’s recent work with the Brighter Futures Indiana grant program has already helped connect more than 40 families at all three of our centers with funding support, and that number will continue to increase.”

The Brighter Futures Indiana grant draws upon COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Act funding to provide sliding-scale, income-based scholarships for families to support their child care payments. Currently, of the more than 2,000 participating programs in Indiana, 48 child care programs in Monroe County are taking part in Brighter Futures Indiana, which will be offered through March 2022.

The Bloomington campus has three early child care centers, all three of which are approved providers for the grant: Hoosier Courts, Campus View Child Care Center and Campus Children’s Center.

Olson began as director of Campus Children’s Center in 2003. In that role, she has coordinated and managed a model early care and education program that serves children ages 6 weeks through 5 years; managed staffing and enrollment; facilitated curriculum planning and staff development opportunities; and conducted program evaluations.

Throughout her IU career, Olson has also worked closely with Dunnuck, who was director of Early Childhood Education Services for 33 years and retired Sept. 30.

Olson’s tenure at Campus Children’s Center included oversight of two expansions; oversight and maintenance of state standards for licensing, national accreditation and the state quality rating program; and successful direction of operations during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she expanded the center’s focus to the overall needs of the university to provide consistent, efficient, quality care for all.

“Every family with young children deserves access to high-quality information about caring for babies through preschool-aged children,” Olson said. “I want our office to become a helpful educational resource for all IU Bloomington families, regardless of current or future enrollment in one of our centers. I am thrilled to be able to partner more closely with area nonprofits and families as we look toward the future.”

Olson received her master’s degree in childhood development and early childhood education at Wheelock College in Boston, and her bachelor’s degree in history at Iowa State University. She has worked in the child care space at IU since 2002, and in early childhood education since 1993.

Jennifer Piurek is director of communications and special projects in the Office of the Provost.