Building Bridges: Creating Strong Partnerships for Early Childhood Education

As leading experts on, and close partners with, the business community, we understand the conditions necessary for businesses and communities to thrive. From our experience working with business leaders, we have seen that success and great impact are achieved when business leaders and early childhood education advocates work closely together to find shared solutions.

Each side is an asset to the other, bringing unique perspectives and ideas for how to fix the problem. Early education advocates have deep knowledge and expertise on this topic and are a resource for business leaders. At the same time, business leaders are solutions-oriented innovators and important voices for change in their communities. We have seen encouraging results from these partnerships and are working hard to bring more people together to see more successes.

This report brings together data, research, and lessons learned to guide the development of successful and lasting partnerships between the business and early childhood education communities. Our recommendations are grounded in qualitative and quantitative research conducted for this effort.

In a survey, we asked over 150 business leaders and early education advocates about what compels them to action. We listened, through focus groups and one-on-one interviews, to individuals who have created successful partnerships to understand what approaches worked well and what insights they have for others. Now, we are excited to share those results with you through recommendations, tips, and a breakdown of the most impactful facts and data points.