Case Studies

National League of Cities

The National League of Cities (NLC) is the country’s oldest and largest national organization representing the interests of 49 state municipal leagues and more than 19,000 member cities. In 2000, NLC launched the Youth, Education, and Families Institute (YEF) in recognition of the unique and influential roles that other local leaders can play in strengthening families and improving outcomes for children and youth.

School Readiness Consulting is working with YEF on the implementation of their Educational Alignment for Young Children Initiative (EAYC). Funded by the W.K. Kellogg and the Annie E. Casey Foundations, this initiative provides intensive technical assistance to selected cities to build aligned systems of education and services for children 0-8 and their families. The initiative builds on NLC’s success working with municipalities to implement best practices in creating educational alignment and rests on the conviction that cities and city leaders represent a largely untapped resource for informing state and federal efforts to create strong early learning systems.

To support that vision, SRC works with YEF to provide resources and information designed to advance local practice, build peer networks of municipal leaders, and inform policy decisions. In that capacity, SRC is facilitating a national convening that will:

• Raise the profile of EAYC accomplishments and increase understanding among federal and state leaders of the role that local governments are playing in building early learning systems.

• Explore the role that federal leaders/federal policy-makers play in supporting community-based early learning efforts.

• Position local leaders as key resources for both informing policy decisions and driving policy implementation at the local level.