Focus Areas

Outstanding Leaders

Driving question: What would it take to produce – as a rule rather than an exception – early childhood and early elementary leaders who understand and motivate great instruction, respond to the diverse needs of families, catalyze program improvements and inspire information-sharing and alignment between and among grades, so that every child may reach his or her potential?

The impact of high quality leadership can be felt the moment one walks into an elementary school or early childhood center. McCormick’s Education Program continues to partner with organizations striving to expand Illinois’ cohort of great early childhood and early elementary leaders by supporting systemic recruitment, training, development, retention, compensation and policy efforts. The program places special emphasis on attracting and developing diverse and creative leaders able to respond to the complex needs of an increasingly diverse population.

Quality Teachers

Driving question: How do we create a healthy pipeline of qualified, effective and diverse early childhood educators, and also better prepare and support them?

Whether home visitors working with new parents, center-based preschool teachers or early elementary grade educators, quality teachers can alter a child’s lifelong trajectory. We now have a good idea of what great teaching looks like in those early years. The field continues work to figure out how to attract, develop, support, compensate and retain more great teachers.

Engaged Families

Driving question: Is it possible to equip all families with the tools, knowledge, and skills necessary to unlock their young child’s full potential?

Supported families are engaged families, and engaged families play the most important role outside school in ensuring a child’s healthy development. The Education Program explores and supports innovative strategies at the community, regional, and state levels to support in a more systemic way the kind of warm, interactive parenting that every child needs to arrive at kindergarten fully ready to thrive and to third grade on-track for success.