During this July 28, 2020 Funder to Funder Conversation, Jacqueline Jones, Ph.D., President of the Foundation for Child Development, and Jessie Rasmussen, President of the Buffett Early Childhood Fund, described the membership, guiding principles and initiatives of...
“Bill Isler [a longtime colleague and friend of Mister Rogers and former head of Fred Rogers Productions] said that, through television, we have the choice of encouraging others to demean this life or to cherish it in creative and imaginative ways. We see Genie [Deez]...
Co-Sponsored by Exponent Philanthropy“It’s been great to see the flexibility, how organizations have reflected on their ability to rise to the moment, give out more funding, and/or be mindful of how they can use not just their financial assets but their collective...
“Something I've learned is that this work falls on a continuum. A literacy-rich environment can be as simple as paint and chalk on a sidewalk or can look like a much more expensive play structure. But I think the amazing thing with this work is that both of those...
“We use public policy, research and data, community investments and communications all together to leverage systemic change. And I think the work of chronic absenteeism is a great example to see this work in action,” –Janice Palmer, Senior Vice President, Government...
This Funder-to-Funder Conversation began with reflections from Liz Simons, Board Chair of the Heising-Simons Foundation, who explained her personal commitment to helping math flourish in early childhood settings. Simons shared her belief that access to early math...
During the inaugural session of our Funder-to-Funder Conversation series, Janet Froetscher, President of the J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation, shared highlights from the growing body of science pointing to the impact of the prenatal-to-age-3 time period on a...
The ecosystem for literacy support is growing in a good way. There’s much more available than when Barksdale [Reading Institute] began its work. What makes Reading Universe distinct though is that it is FREE and also that it is a comprehensive scope and sequence for...
“This is an incredible moment for local advocates ― whether you're in the digital inclusion space or anything else that rides on top of digital inclusion, issues like immigration, housing, education and health care.” Amina Fazlullah of Common Sense offered the above...
Imagine a philanthropic investment so powerful that it changes how children think — something that embeds the conviction, “I have a future. Education is for me, not for somebody else.” According to Patty Grant, Executive Director of the Community Foundation of Wabash...
With the experiences of pandemic-precipitated school closures causing a growing number of schools to recognize and embrace the necessity of strong family engagement, this session engaged a panel of education funders in reflecting on their organizations’ evolving and...
“I think of philanthropy’s unique role as the ‘shifter’ — how we shift the conversation, the policy and research conversations from ‘here’s how the system is broken’ to actually defining what we want in the ideal future in a very tangible way….I think philanthropy can...
“People know that they need to engage families, that relationships are key, but they don’t always connect that to the incredibly important performance indicators we want for kids. That feels like a true opportunity moving forward, to really capitalize on the demand...