Mary Alice Cohen serves as the Chief Program Officer at the Colorado Department of Early Childhood, championing a holistic vision for equitable access and well-being for all Colorado children, families, and early childhood professionals. She oversees the administration of key CDEC programs, including child care licensing, subsidy, workforce and quality, universal preschool, early intervention, home visitation, and early childhood mental health programs.

Mary Alice's work on the state level is underscored by key accomplishments, including leading the transition to the new Department of Early Childhood as the Director of the Office of Early Childhood, designing and implementing the State’s first Family Voice Council, and launching the 2GO Two-Generation pilot programs. She oversaw innovative strategies that utilized $700 million in federal and state stimulus pandemic funds to stabilize and expand capacity in the early childhood sector.

A nationally recognized advocate for two-generation work, Mary Alice was selected as an Aspen Ascend Fellow in the 2023 Cohort. Her extensive background in community empowerment includes serving as a founding board member of an award-winning children's museum in Washington State, where she successfully leveraged public and private funding to establish the museum as a central hub in the community. She directed all programs and operations for the Mountain Resource Center, where she successfully launched and scaled key initiatives like the Parents as Teachers (PAT) Program and the 2Gen Center for Family Opportunity, and developed a Connect for Health regional hub across five counties. Early in her career, she assisted mothers who were migrant farm workers with vocational skills to achieve economic mobility for their entire family.

Mary Alice holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Master of Education (M.Ed.) from the University of San Francisco.