Taking Action for Children and Families: Learning from the First 40 Communities (Post #1)

“The ultimate goal of a stronger, more seamless care and education continuum is to initiate and sustain a strong foundation for future success by providing effective learning opportunities across the infant-toddler years, preschool ages, and early grades in all settings.” (National Research Council, Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth through Age 8: A Unifying Foundation).[1]…

A Game-Changing Opportunity for Early Childhood (Yale School of Medicine)

As we rebuild after the pandemic, we have an enormous opportunity to reinvent early education and care in the United States in ways that dramatically improve outcomes for children and families, strengthen communities, and advance equity for all. In this post, I share three core principles for rethinking how communities serve children and families and…

In Her Words–Child Care in Crisis: Can Biden’s Plan Save It?

“At the root of this crisis is America’s relationship with child care itself. Unlike every other developed country, the United States has never, with the exception of a few years during World War II, treated child care as an essential service. Since at least the 1970s, when President Richard Nixon vetoed a bipartisan effort to implement…

Building State and Local Systems in Tandem

New America published my new report on state and local First 10 initiatives today. In 2018, state leaders in Maine determined that their efforts to support children and their families were hampered by the lack of coordination among key stakeholders—early education and care providers, public school educators, and health and social services providers. Addressing these…

Education Week Commentary: Getting the First 10 Years Right

See my Education Week Commentary on bridging the gaps between early childhood, elementary school, and health and human services. Please join me in getting the word out and supporting these important collaborations. In addition to the leading edge communities I mention in the essay, 13 communities in Maine and 13 in Pennsylvania are implementing First…

How States Can Support the First Decade of Children’s Lives

[wpvideo mq1WlvRC] Sponsored by the National Association of Early Childhood Specialists on October 17th, this webinar explores the implications for state policy of the recent study, All Children Learn and Thrive: Building First 10 Schools and Communities.  This report looks at innovative schools and communities that combine alignment across early childhood and elementary education and care (children’s first…

Education Week Reviews the All Children Learn and Thrive Study

  Education Week’s Christina Samuels begins her review of the All Children Learn and Thrive study as follows below. I appreciate that she highlights several examples from the study. While the Executive Summary provides the key findings and proposes a theory of action, see the Full Report for numerous case studies and a fuller explanation…

Video Recording: New America Panel on the First 10 Years

In case you missed it, here is the video recording of the April 30 New America panel event on my new study. The study, All Children Learn and Thrive: Building First 10 Schools and Communities, examines partnerships between school districts and communities to improve teaching, learning, and care throughout the first decade of children’s lives….

New Study Released Today: All Children Learn and Thrive

We are pleased to release All Children Learn and Thrive: Building First 10 Schools and Communities. This study examines First 10 Schools and Communities—coordinated efforts taking place around the country to improve teaching, learning, and care during the first decade of children’s lives. First 10 Schools and Communities bring together school districts, elementary schools, and early…

Live-Streamed Panel Moderated by Ed Week’s Christina Samuels: The First 10 Years

The Early and Elementary Education Policy unit at New America is hosting a panel event on the release of my new study, “All Children Learn and Thrive: Building First 10 Schools and Communities.” The live-streamed event will take place in Washington, DC on April 30. Laura Bornfreund of New America is organizing the event and…