Dayne is a research analyst in the early childhood development area. She graduated from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Science in neurobiology and psychology. As a first-generation Mexican immigrant, Dayne is passionate about making research more inclusive for Spanish-speaking populations and increasing the standard of living for low-income immigrants in the US. She has over four years of experience conducting research with predominately Spanish-speaking populations and brings expertise in intentionally recruiting and engaging Spanish-speaking families, program staff, and administrators to participate in research studies.

As a bilingual researcher, she has experience, designing, and conducting surveys, focus groups, interviews, and interventions in English and Spanish. In her previous role as lead interventionist and research coordinator on a multi-site, NIH-funded obesity prevention study, she worked directly with Head Start program administrators, staff, teachers, and families in Seattle, Houston, and the Central Valley of Washington State to deliver a bilingual preschool intervention. This experience prompted Dayne to shift her research interest from clinical to policy, in order to evaluate and improve the implementation of practices and programs designed for low-income Latino/Hispanic families.

In her current role, Dayne has worked directly engaging federal and state stakeholders to participate in focus groups and expert panels. She has facilitated interviews with Spanish-speaking families in North Carolina and community-based organizations in Minnesota to understand the experience of Latino/Hispanic families in accessing child care programs and services in their respective states. Currently, Dayne serves as a technical assistance task lead supporting several states and community teams in using the Child Trends Access Framework to guide their parent and community engagement efforts and ultimately promote equitable access to early care and education services and programs. Her research interests focus on evaluating and improving the implementation of policies, practices, and programs designed for low-income Latino/Hispanic families by engaging family and community voices.