The first eight years of a child’s life are the most important for future learning, health, and life success. Early learning opportunities ensure that young children are prepared for school and life. Promise Neighborhoods are federally funded place-based initiatives that provide a cradle-to-career pipeline of programs to support children and families—from birth through K–12 education to college and career. In early childhood, Promise Neighborhoods support the health, well-being, and early learning success of young children. Lessons from these efforts assist Promise Neighborhoods and other place-based initiatives in promoting kindergarten readiness and success.

This brief highlights strategies used by Promise Neighborhoods to make progress towards academic, social and well-being goals of young children. It covers strategies and examples of coordination and capacity building for early learning partners in the community, a cornerstone for remaining agile and robust in supporting families and children. Next, the brief discusses evidence-based approaches and data driven decision-making for accountability and tracking progress. Lastly, the brief covers approaches to address the pandemic’s adverse impact on development and assessment, exacerbated for children from families with low incomes, children of color, and dual language learners. Two Promise Neighborhoods with strong early childhood education programs and data from San Diego and Eastern Kentucky are featured to provide rich details to their strategies and implementation.

This brief, published by Insight Policy Research through the Promise Neighborhoods Training and Technical Assistance contract, is available on the Promise Neighborhood website.