Excel by Eight has created a resource grid to show how we work to improve health and education for young children. The grid focuses on four important areas for a child’s wellbeing:
Family – Community – Health – Education
The resource grid works like a power grid, with many connections working together. An unreliable or patchy flow of resources to the grid can result in a range of child development problems that can have long-lasting consequences for children’s health and well-being.
Through our partnerships with families, communities, policymakers, and businesses, we can work together to power a strong and reliable resource grid for children in Arkansas.
Local models for change across Arkansas are designed to strengthen resource grids within each community so children have what they need to thrive.
Each E8 Community is led by a local steering committee and has its own structure, set of needs, and bright spots. They assess resources, identify gaps in their community’s grid, and develop and implement strategies to improve outcomes for children in their early years.
Rather than give communities a cookie-cutter model for change that doesn’t recognize their unique attributes, we connect them with resources and guide them through a planning process that is structured yet flexible enough to establish goals and create a realistic plan that builds upon their strengths and priorities.
Our policy work is referred to as the Excel by Eight Foundations Collaborative because it focuses on infants and toddlers. A child’s experiences in the first three years are the bricks and mortar of brain development, with more than one million new neural connections forming in an infant’s brain every second.
Entire communities benefit when we invest in children during these foundational years. This early investment begins at home but is also supported by effective programs and policies.
Government has a role to play in helping parents access needed services. With this early support, infants can grow into healthy kids who are confident, empathetic, and ready for school and life. And our communities, workforce, and economy become stronger and more productive as a result.
Stay informed on the latest in early childhood development.
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