Oregon Early Childhood Inclusion (OECI) partners convened at Oregon State University for an annual celebration of statewide work to bring high‐quality, inclusive preschool policies and practices to all levels of Oregon’s early care and education system.
On February 8, 2024 school teams from four Early School Success (ESS) districts convened for a collaborative winter cross-network meeting. This marked the first time the meeting was held virtually. The gathering provided an opportunity for intentional pause and thoughtful reflection on the equity gaps within school systems, the impact of the school district’s change ideas, and support for students.
As we step into a new year, we are reflecting on the journey of Early School Success (ESS) and how collaboration, partnership, and commitment are creating aligned early learning experiences for children in preschool through fifth grade, across Oregon.
We often talk about how investing in a child’s earliest years can set them up for long-term success. In order to build a strong foundation during this period of rapid brain development, it's important to connect families with the tools needed to support their child’s development as early as possible.
In collaboration with Suzie Kuerschner and S.P.I.R.I.T.S., we explore Indigenous innovations in early childhood, culturally-aligned educational services, and the power of Collaborative Circles of Care.
Kali Thorne Ladd reflects on the recent Champions for Children - 20 Years of Impact event, which celebrated the past 20 years of Children's Institute's work to make Oregon the best place to be a kid. Thank you to all the champions for children who joined us and if you couldn't make it, read on to see how you can join our movement.
In 2022-2023, Children’s Institute (CI) worked with Promise Venture Studio to explore how to scale the Early Learning Academy, CI's training platform for strengthening early learning in school districts in Oregon. Through an 18-week Promising Ventures Fellowship, this opportunity supported growth-stage equity-driven ventures focused on making a difference in the lives of children prenatal to age 5, and their families and caregivers.
Creating excellent early care and learning opportunities for children begins by supporting the skilled educators and caregivers behind the work. Too often, inadequate working environments and poor compensation cause significant difficulties for those trying to offer the best quality education and care. These conditions have been overlooked in the past despite their direct impact on skill development, teaching effectiveness, and well-being of providers and children. But with sustainable support strategies and in-depth analysis of areas in need of improvement, Oregon can transform the working environments of early educators for the better.
Our visit to Eastern Oregon in late January illuminated how we make transformational change for children, families, communities and our state. The more we listen and learn from communities across Oregon, the better off we’ll be.
Social-emotional learning (SEL) has been in the news a lot lately, and this recent surge of news about SEL has come with a good deal of misinformation. In this blog series, we’ll attempt to set the record straight on SEL by exploring the benefits and importance of SEL for young children, highlighting its recent politicization, and understanding what polling tells us about the best way to communicate with parents about the topic.
