Director Bios
Paul B. Miller
Executive Director
Throughout the 30+ years of an extraordinary career in education, Paul Miller has successfully led Kidango to become one of the leading educational institutes for children in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Since joining Kidango (then Tri-Cities Children’s Centers) in 1979, Paul has been instrumental in helping Kidango grow from serving just 90 children at one center in Fremont to serving over 2,500 children attending 40 centers and family child care homes located in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties.
Paul was appointed by the California Superintendent of Public Instruction to the Universal Preschool Task Force. As a major contributor to this movement, Paul has successfully brought Universal Preschool to the New Haven Unified School District and continues to work hard to introduce Universal Preschool to other Bay Area school districts.
Paul has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Math as well as a master’s degree in Administration.
Kristina Adams
Director of Education
Kristina Adams oversees the Education Department and is responsible for supervising and leading a team of seven regional directors, who oversee all Kidango child develoment centers. Kristina has worked with Kidango for over seven years in various capacities including regional director and center director. As Director of Education, Kristina sets a vision and goals with the regional director team to provide high quality program services in the care and early education of children and support for families.
In her director role, Kristina works to ensure all Kidango centers provide developmentally appropriate learning environments and experiences that meet the needs of our diverse population of children and families. Kristina and her team promote best practices in the care and education of children and are responsible for compliance with Title 22 (Community Care Licensing) and Title 5 (Department of Education) regulations.
Ms. Adams has provided numerous trainings for child development professionals, youth ministers and youth ministry adult volunteers and families focusing on communication and child development. She has been a presenter at the California Association for the Education of Young Children (CAEYC) Leadership Day, CAEYC Main Conference, National After-School Association (NAA) National Conference, Kidango’s Our Children, Our Vision, Our World (OCOVOW) Conference, Oakland Diocese Catechetical Conference, Youth for Christ (YFC) Staff Development Training and other community-based organizations’ training seminars.
Ms. Adams has also developed and implemented trainings for Kidango staff in the areas of observation of children, assessing children and training staff to observe and document children’s development. Kristina has participated in the CAEYC and California Department of Education’s Child Development Division Train-the-Trainer conferences, has been trained to facilitate the California Pre-K Guidelines Trainings and has been trained to provide crisis intervention counseling and family support through the Diocese of Oakland.
In her support of the community, Kristina has been elected as a member of the Northern California Section Board of the California Child Development Administrators Association (CCDAA), an Ambassador for the Livermore Chamber of Commerce and co-founder of the Livermore Youth Pastor’s Network.
Ms. Adams has a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Studies with an emphasis in Child and Adolescent Development. Kristina also holds a California Department of Education Early Childhood Education Program Director Permit and has held a K-12 Multiple Subject Teaching Credential.
Kate Breitzman
Director of Facilities & Operations
Kate Breitzman’s role at Kidango is to work with collaborative partners in designing, setting-up and licensing new facilities. Kate has over twenty years experience with Community Care Licensing regulations and has over twelve years experience with construction projects, including those funded by Community Development Block Grant programs. In addition, Kate has experience with the regulations and quality standards applicable to early care and education programs, is a member of Kidango’s Risk Management Committee and has worked with Cal-OSHA to monitor the safety of our centers. Kate also oversees Kidango’s maintenance, Front Office and Technology departments.
Over the past 12 years Kate has led Kidango to successfully license all of our centers.
Kate has an educational background in Liberal Studies, Early Child Development and Playground Safety.
Karen Flores
Director of Mental Health Services
Karen Flores oversees Kidango’s Mental Health Services Department which includes direct service programs, screening and assessment and consultation programs in Santa Clara and Alameda Counties. Karen has extensive experience providing training and professional development workshops for early education professionals. She also provides consultation and training to Kidango teaching staff and families regarding social emotional development and mental health issues.
Karen was a bilingual instructor of classes for parents with children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and families of mentally ill patients for Kaiser Permanente at their Santa Teresa facility in San Jose. She has developed and provides a series of bilingual workshops titled “How a Child’s Special Needs Impacts the Family” and “Infant Development” for Parents Helping Parents (PHP).
Karen has a master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from JFK University and is currently a marriage and family therapist registered intern and is in her third year of a doctorate program in Clinical Psychology at Southern California University. Karen has attended multiple trainings to address key issues of being an effective trainer including; Adult Learning Styles, How to Facilitate a Training, Addressing English Language Learners, Developing and Implementing an Effective Training and Addressing Culture and Diversity Issues.Additional university coursework completed by Karen includes; Group Dynamics, Training and Development, Introduction to Teaching Methods, and Leadership Skills.
Karen is a licensed psychologist in Mexico and had a private practice in Mexico City working with children and families in a multidisciplinary model. In 1997, Karen developed and taught programs on behavior modification through positive reinforcement for Ann Sullivan Preschool and Elementary School in Naucalpan, Mexico.
Nereyra Houle
Director of Finance
As Kidango’s Director of Finance, Nereyra is responsible for overseeing the agency’s accounting and program compliance functions. In this position, she works to ensure Kidango is in compliance with funding terms and conditions of all funding sources and ensures Kidango follows generally accepted accounting principles including those set by the Independent Auditor, the Federal Office of Management and Budget, and Kidango’s Board of Directors.
Prior to taking on the Director of Finance role, Nereyra spent two years as Kidango’s Finance Manager which provided her extensive experience with the financial systems of Kidango. Her past work as a Senior Accountant for the Insight Center for Community Economic Development in Oakland, CA and an Accountant for Instituto Familiar de la Raza in San Francisco, CA have also equipped her with the skills to successfully lead Kidango’s Finance Department. In these positions, Nereyra has managed all accounting functions including payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable, account reconciliations, revenue recognition, cost allocations and financial reporting.
Nereyra has long been devoted to employing her skills in agencies committed to the betterment of the community. She takes great pride in her work at Kidango and the contribution she is able to make to the organization’s current and future financial stability. Nereyra holds a Bachelor’s Degree in International Business in addition to a Public Accounting Certificate. She is also fluent in English and Spanish.
Camille Llanes-Fontanilla
Director of Development and Communications
Camille Llanes-Fontanilla oversees Kidango’s fund development, communications, marketing, public relations and enrollment, compliance and eligibility functions. Each function is vital to maintaining strong community relationships and Kidango’s fiscal health. As Director of Development and Communications, Camille collaborates with agency staff, board members and community partners to develop strategies that secure financial resources, increase agency awareness and promote client participation in Kidango’s quality early care and education programs.
Prior to her Director role, Camille supported the Development and Communications department since 2005, first as the Assistant Manager, then as the department Manager. In her previous roles, Camille developed comprehensive marketing campaigns, communications plans and fundraising policies. Additionally, Camille managed Kidango’s special events, including the Gifts from the Heart program, the annual Taster’s Showcase benefit and the 30th Anniversary Gala. Prior to joining Kidango, Camille held public affairs internships at the CBS-5/KPIX and KICU Action 36/Cable 6 television stations.
Camille is committed to improving the lives of children and families. In addition to her work at Kidango, Camille is a volunteer for The Role Model Program and actively participates in community activism. Camille holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications, with a minor in Ethnic Studies, from the University of California, Berkeley and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from San Jose State University.