Here’s what we do
We offer professional consulting services to build equitable early childhood systems so all young children are able to reach their full potential.
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We have a long history of working alongside our partners to drive change. Our comprehensive approach incorporates our commitment to social justice and our expertise across three service areas—Advise, Implement and Evaluate. We support leaders and communities in states, cities, school districts, foundations, nonprofits and other partners, to examine and communicate the impact of systems-level efforts, improve practice in teaching and leadership, and execute rigorous evaluation of early childhood initiatives.
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No matter the task, working with us is not a one-size-fits-all experience. We design our partnerships to identify and respond to the unique needs of each project and community, including how those needs may change over time. From collaborative research design to co-creating actionable strategic plans, we embrace the dynamics of every partner and stage.
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Advise
We examine and communicate the impact of early childhood infrastructure, services, and investments.
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We bring together our partners with families, providers, and community leaders to collectively plan for the future. We facilitate a collaborative and strength-based process to build on unique assets as we co-create actionable strategic plans to improve early childhood systems.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:Deep analysis of the existing context and landscape
Setting a common vision among key stakeholders
Co-creation of strategies and action steps
Identifying measures of success
Developing plans for implementation
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We design and facilitate intentional conversations for our partners. With each interaction, we combine active listening with our ability to effectively question and push new thinking. As thought partners, we leverage our early childhood expertise to share relevant ideas, trends, and innovations in the field. Together, this helps to create space and offer resources for our partners to meaningfully reflect, solve complex challenges, and find key opportunities to advance their early childhood-focused initiatives.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:Collaborative meeting design and facilitation
Sharing successful practices and tools from the early childhood field
Synthesis of key decisions and recommendations for next steps
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We work to uncover the human story at the core. From crafting ethical and compelling stories to identifying the right delivery strategy, we design storytelling campaigns that effectively communicate the journey of early childhood initiatives. Our services offer a range of support to foster organizational story sharing and team building, as well as to create stories that share impact and promote sustainability.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:
Support to plan and write engaging content
Guidance on culturally relevant and inclusive storytelling practices
Implementation of story sharing activities through photography, video, websites, and social media
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Implement
We help partners design and implement processes for continuous improvement, including tools for building internal leadership and educator capacity.
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We design and deliver transformational professional learning systems and experiences for organizations, leaders, coaches, and educators.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:Co-creating and facilitating innovative professional learning
Offering experiences that value collaboration and expertise that participants bring
Facilitating meetings, professional development and convenings through transformational approaches to adult learning
Facilitating content and processes that center equity
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We translate equity-focused and anti-bias commitments into meaningful outcomes within systems and organizations and amongst leaders and practitioners.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:Facilitating analysis of the layered inequities that persist in early learning
Offering an individual, organizational, and institutional paradigm when exploring change efforts
Developing content that supports self-reflection, historical and current realities, and behavioral change
Deploying racially, culturally and linguistically diverse facilitation teams
Engaging our experience collaborating with a range of early childhood leaders
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Evaluate
We take a collaborative approach to rigorous, responsive, and equity-focused evaluation that centers families and communities.
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We design and conduct research and evaluation that aligns with partner needs and priorities, centers the voices of those who experience barriers to opportunity, and produces actionable recommendations. We offer methodological expertise in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods designs. We conduct research and evaluation projects that include a variety of approaches, such as impact analysis, implementation research, surveys, cost analysis, literature reviews, and descriptive studies.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:Developing research designs and evaluation plans that are responsive to partner and community needs
Engaging a broad range of community leaders and members of the field in culturally responsive ways
Implementing evaluation plans and collecting data with integrity
Conducting rigorous analysis using the most appropriate methodologies to answer the evaluation questions
Developing deliverables with findings and recommendations that are actionable, relevant to the community contexts, and tailored to a variety of audiences, including community members, practitioners, policymakers and other researchers
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We support large- and small-scale data collection nationwide, with a special focus on anti-bias research approaches and protocols that are inclusive of diverse and multilingual participants. Our team brings a broad range of identities, lived experiences, and areas of expertise to our project work, allowing us to challenge assumptions and explore different ways of understanding and interpreting the information we seek, gather, and analyze.
We offer a highly-customizable approach that involves:Development of data management systems and data collection instruments
Preparation for data collection through data collector training and support and participant recruitment
Collection and analysis of data for child assessments, observations, surveys, and existing administrative data
Development of protocols and collection of qualitative data through focus groups, listening sessions, interviews, and Photovoice
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Where we work
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Our Partners
*National partners
American Institutes for Research*
Association of State Public Health Nutritionists*
Buffett Institute for Early Childhood
Children's Opportunity Alliance of Montgomery County
Colorado Department of Education
District of Columbia Public Schools
District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education
DC Promise Neighborhood Initiative
Early Childhood Funders Collaborative*
Early Educator Investment Collaborative*
Early Learning Challenge TA Center*
Fairfax Virginia Office for Children
Family League of Baltimore/Baltimore Infants and Toddlers Program
Fort Worth Independent School District
Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute
Inspired Child (formerly Inner City-Inner Child)
Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education
Kentucky Early Childhood Standards Leadership Team
Lourie Center for Social-Emotional Wellness
Mary's Center for Maternal and Child Health
Michigan Department of Education Office of Great Start
Minnesota Department of Education
Montgomery County Health & Human Services (LEARN)
Mundo Verde Public Charter School
National Association of Counties*
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine*
National Association of State Leaders in Early Education*
National Black Child Development Institute*
New Hampshire Department of Education
North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education
North Carolina Governor's Office
Office of Head Start/Administration for Children and Families*
Oregon Early Learning Department
Pennsylvania Office for Child Development & Early Learning
Pre-Pave Public Charter School
Seattle Department of Education and Early Learning
Special Olympics International*
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation*
The Foundation for Enhancing Communities
The Mayor's Office of Chicago/Start Early
The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence
Virginia Early Childhood Foundation
Vermont Child Development Division and Head Start Collaboration Office