The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is pleased to announce that Dr. Katherine Beckmann has been named National Policy Director. As director, she will lead efforts to protect and advance U.S. policies and systems that support the health, well-being, early learning, and economic opportunity of young children and their families.
The Packard Foundation supports partners who are working to ensure that the health care, child care, and financial supports systems that serve moms, pregnant people, and families with young children are stronger, better connected, and equitable. This work focuses on reducing racial disparities in outcomes, recognizing that a future in which all children and families thrive is not possible while inequities persist.
Dr. Beckmann is an established leader in this field, bringing to the role significant experience working in the intersection of child development, disease prevention, and health promotion to better prepare young children for lifelong education.
“Katie is deeply respected by colleagues and partners not only for her expertise in domestic federal and state policy and systems, but equally for her unwavering commitment to children and families,” said Meera Mani, Vice President of Families and Communities for the Packard Foundation. “We are thrilled to have her leading this work at the Foundation.”
Prior to joining the Foundation, Dr. Beckmann served as the Senior Policy Advisor for Early Childhood Health in the Administration for Children and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services where she coordinated, integrated, and implemented early childhood health and development policies and initiatives across Head Start, child care, Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge, and Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting programs. She joined the Foundation in 2016 as a program officer to lead the children’s health strategy and federal policy portfolio for children and families.
“This is a critical time to ensure that state and federal policies and systems support the strengths and meet the needs of young children, pregnant people, mothers, and their families—particularly those who face the greatest systemic barriers,” said Dr. Beckmann. “I am looking forward to continuing to work alongside the team at the Packard Foundation and our partners to ensure public dollars and programs have a meaningful impact in the lives of families and the communities in which they live, play, and work.”
Dr. Beckmann received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology with Distinction at Columbia University where her research focused on social and environmental risk factors leading to toxic stress during pregnancy and cognitive outcomes in preschoolers. She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology at Washington University in St. Louis and a master’s in public health in health policy and administration at Yale University.
