Dr. Cristina Pacione-Zayas, Chief of Staff to Mayor Brandon Johnson, is a distinguished education and policy advocate widely recognized for her efforts to promote educational equity and advance social justice. Formerly as the Associate Vice President of Policy at the Erikson Institute, she played a crucial role in shaping early childhood policy and advocating for children, families, communities. Dr. Pacione-Zayas is credited with establishing Erikson’s Early Childhood Leadership Academy and Community Data Lab—two statewide initiatives that have helped Illinois leaders and lawmakers understand the importance of investing in children’s early years and their overall well-being and development. Dr. Pacione-Zayas served as a State Senator representing the 20th District from December 2020 until she joined Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration in June 2023. While in the Senate she was lead sponsor of 35 bills signed into law spanning education, housing and public safety, and returned $235 million to Illinois households. Born and raised in Logan Square Chicago, Dr. Pacione-Zayas earned her doctorate in Educational Policy Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is raising two beautiful humans with her husband in her childhood neighborhood.