Early Care & Education

The Community Building Institute has facilitated and guided a wide range of efforts within the field of early care and education with a focus on building consensus among disparate interests. Projects include:

Child Care Now Annual Meeting of National and State Child Care Advocates. Potapchuk has facilitated the last four annual gatherings of approximately 75 state and national child care advocates as they worked on federal strategy, innovations and improving access and quality.

Children’s Leadership Council.  The Council is a coalition of more than 50 organizations that work on issues from birth to young adulthood, and includes all major national early childhood organizations.  Potapchuk was brought in to facilitate the group through a make-or-break period of formation. The coalition is now three years old and provides a formidable voice for children.

Early Childhood National Organizations Strategy Session.  With leadership of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), board chairs and CEOs from six early childhood organizations discussed federal and state strategy.  Participants included the National Head Start Association, ZERO TO THREE, National Black Child Development, Early Care and Education Consortium, National Family Child Care Association, and NAEYC.

North Carolina Early Childhood Advisory Council.  CBI assists the Office of the Governor with the development of N.C.’s Early Childhood Advisory Council.  Potapchuk has assisted with the initial strategic and process design and facilitates the work of the Council.

VOICES Early Care and Education Workgroup.  VOICES for America’s Children brought state leaders in early childhood together to formulate a policy strategy for school readiness. Potapchuk facilitated the work session.

Working Meeting of Early Childhood Data Group.  Potapchuk developed a strategy session, co-convened by the National Data Quality Campaign, the National Conference of State Legislators, the National Governors Association, and the Council of Chief State School Officers, to build a data framework for early childhood that linked to state-level K12 data warehouses.

Working Session on Early Childhood Financing.  Potapchuk facilitated a strategy session for the BUILD initiative, which convened leading thinkers and practitioners to better understand integrating federal funding to achieve early childhood systems-building goals.