Announcing Our New Executive Director

Building Our Future is pleased to introduce Tatjana Bicanin as the partnership’s new Executive Director, bringing a unique balance of mission focus, strategic depth, and steadiness to the team.
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Her initial reaction to Building Our Future was excitement. “I was encouraged by past and new colleagues to learn about Kenosha’s first cradle to career collective impact effort focused on education and workforce development. I was instantly excited about the work,” said Tatjana. Her relationship with Building Our Future started in 2016 when she attended the Kenosha Strive Community Summit held at University of Wisconsin-Parkside.  

Shortly thereafter, she was hired as Community Impact Manager, facilitating the Smart Beginnings (formerly known as Kindergarten Readiness) Action Network and Community Engagement Network. Before becoming Executive Director, she was the Director of Operations, providing oversight to the daily operations, staff development, and strategic effort to lead the partnership goals: (1) Every child enters school ready to learn, (2) Every student succeeds in school, and (3) Every student succeeds in a career.

Tatjana has over 14 years of experience in the non-profit sector, both domestic and international, including serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Eastern Caribbean. In her past roles, she developed strong working relationships with leaders in business and the non-profit community to effect social change to benefit the common good – our students, our families and our neighborhoods. Through this work, she has become convinced that the most effective way to address issues of equity requires a focus on our children, especially those that come from economically disadvantaged families.

“I am eager to advance the cradle to career success of Kenosha County youth,” she says. “Placing children at the center is critical to ensuring all children have the opportunities they need to achieve their personal potential from cradle to career.”

Tatjana is a native of Kenosha. She received her B.A. from University of Wisconsin-Parkside and holds an M.A. from The University of Chicago in Social Service Administration. Her passion and commitment to Building Our Future, coupled with her knowledge of the work and community, enables her to plan more effectively for the future, expand our outcome areas, and continue to strengthen our relationships with community leaders from all sectors — which includes our youth and parents of Kenosha County.

 How To Get Involved 

• Learn who Building Our Future is by visiting our website
• Learn why we do what we do by reviewing our Baseline Report or visiting the data portion of our website
• Learn what you can do to donate your time, talents, or treasure to help make a difference in the lives of every child, from cradle to career, visiting our Get Involved page on the website

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Article written by Megan Maurer
Communication Intern
Carthage College
​Published in Kenosha News

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