Director

Rebecca (Becky) C. Mercatoris

In June 2021, Rebecca C. Mercatoris (Becky) began serving as the inaugural Director of the Department of Children Initiatives.

An early childhood and education (ECE) professional, Becky has over 20 years of experience in the field. She began her career in a childcare center and continues to support children, families, and ECE and Out of School Time (OST) providers through advocacy and public policy efforts. Becky has provided local, state, and national leadership around critical ECE issues, including the prevention of suspension and expulsion of young children, public policy supporting infants and toddlers and the ECE and OST workforce, and the adoption of shared services across the ECE sector. She has extensive knowledge of the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) and implementation of Pennsylvania’s Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), as well as Pennsylvania’s policy, programmatic, and funding landscapes serving children birth to 12 years old.

Prior to taking the position with the county, Becky was a technical assistance consultant for the Child Care State Capacity Building Center (SCBC) supporting the federal Administration for Children and Families’ Office of Child Care (OCC). She previously worked for Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) as the Bureau Director of the Bureau of Early Learning Policy and Professional Development. Prior experience also includes positions in ECE with the Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children (PAEYC), the Southwest Regional Key, and Tender Care Learning Centers.

Becky holds a Master of Public Policy and Management from the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA) and earned her bachelor’s degree from The College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio.

She and her husband live in Ben Avon and are the parents of two children.

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