Collective Impact
The initiatives of Kids’ First Years are carried out by a collective of individuals and organizations working collaboratively to have a "collective impact" in our community.
The members of the collective serve as the decision-making body for Alexandria’s early care and education system. The collective perspective is designed to guide the effort, determine strategic priorities, and lead the work needed to achieve systems change.
Successful collective impact initiatives embrace a culture of continuous learning, develop an awareness of the context, conditions, and circumstances that the surround the work, strive to understand what is working and what is not, and seek opportunities for improvement.
Kids’ First Years has identified four focus areas for our work: System Alignment, Access, Family Connections, and Quality. Each focus area has a dedicated group of collective members working together as a committee to develop strategies and initiatives.
System Alignment
Promote our collective early care and education vision through collaborative strategic planning, data-driven decision making, sustainable funding, and policy.
- Our system has a shared vision for change and is working together towards that vision
- Our system constantly reflects on how to do things better and builds off each other’s work
- We have dedicated, sustainable, resources to support its early care and education work
- An established data system continually tracks progress and fosters ongoing collaboration
Current Initiatives:
- Coordinated Data System
- Strategic Planning
- Ready Region Collaboration
Access
Foster a coordinated system of equitable access, capacity, enrollment, and funding.
- Programs and services have sufficient capacity to serve all of Alexandria’s vulnerable children
- Programs and services are organized by children and families’ needs rather than by income level
- Programs and services are geographically matched to the needs of children and families
- Providers and professionals act as a resource and referral to other relevant providers or families
Current Initiatives:
- ALX Preschool
Family Connections
Establish meaningful partnerships and channels of information sharing with families to support them as their child’s first teacher.
- Families understand the importance of holistic child development
- Families have better knowledge of and access to
available early care and education resources - Families are actively voicing needs to providers, Kids’ First Years, and other stakeholders as appropriate
Current Initiatives:
- The Basics
- Family Council
- Community Events
Quality
Support the development and coordination of professional learning opportunities to ensure all early care and education providers have the knowledge and skills to provide equitable, high-quality, and culturally responsive learning experiences for young children and have access to opportunities for their continuous professional growth and advancement.
- Educators have the expertise, curricula, resources, and tools needed to provide high-quality instruction that is both culturally and linguistically responsive
- Educators focus on and provide individualized services to children and families with the greatest need
Current Initiatives:
- Workforce Stabilization
- Education Continuum
- Virginia Quality Birth to 5 (VQB5)
Data and Evaluation
Check out our comprehensive data on Alexandria’s early childhood community! We are focused on providing a citywide perspective on our community and using data to inform our collective needs and actions.
Impact Report
Since 2013, our mission has been to give every Alexandria child a strong start in life. This past year, deepening community partnerships across education, healthcare, and local agencies helped us reach more families than ever. Thank you to our incredible donors, partners, and advocates—your support makes this lasting impact possible!