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Atena Danner

Atena Danner

Associate Director, Learning and Facilitation

Atena Danner is the associate director of learning and facilitation for Erikson’s Policy and Leadership Department. Applying diverse lenses to intersecting issues, Danner develops content and provides rigorous facilitation, generative collaboration, and radical imagination to adult learning experiences. Her work in Erikson’s Early Childhood Leadership Academy programs helps build the capacity of leaders in early childhood development and racial equity. Having more than 15 years of experience in the early childhood field, Danner is an experienced and responsive facilitator, committed to creating brave spaces for learning that balance challenging reflective practice with joyful engagement. She has served as a professional coach and facilitator for Erikson’s Language & Literacy Partners, Project Connect, and the Next Steps Evanston Anti-Racism Studio. She has also supported coaching and curriculum development/implementation for the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago and St. Augustine College. Danner is a writer; she holds a Master of Science in child development from Erikson Institute and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.