Strengthening Early Childhood Systems: A Collection of State and Community Strategies in Action
This collection of practical strategies offers state and local leaders real-world examples and tools for strengthening early childhood systems.
An early childhood system is the network of programs, services, policies, infrastructures, and relationships that collectively support young children’s health, development, and well-being. When early childhood systems work well, they connect families with the supports they need – ultimately helping set children up for long-term developmental, health, educational, and economic well-being.
Strengthening Early Childhood Systems: A Collection of State and Community Strategies in Action provides practical strategies to overcoming common challenges and building stronger, more coordinated systems. The real-world examples and insights emerged from state, community, and Tribal teams working with the Early Childhood Developmental Health Systems (ECDHS): Evidence to Impact Center.
This resource is designed for anyone working to improve systems for young children and families – including, but not limited to, state and local leaders, agency taff, community representatives, nonprofit leaders, and family leaders. It features 13 family-centered, evidence-informed strategies organized across four systems-building priority areas:
- Accessible, Integrated Services
- Shared Ownership and Infrastructure
- Data-Informed Decision-Making
- Flexible Funding Approaches
Each strategy includes an example of the approach in action, factors that made it work, related resources, and potential metrics to help teams track progress and support learning over time. Leaders can use this resource to identify strategies that align with their current priorities, learn from communities working in different contexts, and adapt approaches to meet local needs.
Using This Resource: Ways to Get Started
Every community brings unique strengths, partnerships, and experiences to supporting young children and families. Use this resource to build on what is already working, explore new opportunities, and advance the priorities that matter most in your context. A few ways to get started:
- Focus on what families and community partners identify as the greatest need or select the priority area most relevant to your current work.
- Find an example that resonates with your community context and explore the connected strategies.
- Review the metrics to see if you are already collecting data in a particular area.
Strategies and examples reflect the specific states and communities where the work was done. Adapt strategies to fit your community and make them your own. As you explore this collection of strategies, consider using Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles to test strategies on a small scale.
Sneak Peek: Systems-Building Strategies
This resource includes 13 strategies across four priority areas. Here’s a look at some of the strategies and examples you’ll find inside.
Explore approaches for making services easier for families to navigate and more responsive to their needs. Examples highlight ways to bring families into service design and connect them to care through screening, referrals, family support roles.
Learn how communities can build the relationships, structures, and shared decision-making practices needed to sustain systems change. Examples include collaborative approaches that bring families, community partners, and public agencies together to shape priorities and solutions.
See how state and community teams are using data to measure progress, identify opportunities, guide continuous quality improvement, and better understand and respond to family needs. Examples highlight ways to bring family perspectives into the data lifecycle and use data across partners to drive improvement.
Discover strategies for making the most of available resources, including approaches that braid and align funding across agencies and sectors. Examples show how communities are using funding flexibility alongside strong partnerships and shared infrastructure to advance their goals.
