Virginia’s early childhood statewide system, Smart Beginnings, was created in 2005. Host Karen Ponder speaks to Kathy Glazer, president of the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, and Abby Hamilton, president and CEO of United Way of Roanoke Valley, about this locally-driven enterprise creating community commitment to school readiness.
More information about Virginia’s Smart Beginnings here.
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Karen Ponder: Hello and welcome to Critical Connections, a podcast from the BUILD Initiative. I'm Karen Ponder. This series focuses on the importance of strong state and community connections for developing equitable early childhood systems. You'll hear about key ingredients needed to build and sustain this work. And you'll also hear some lessons learned from some of the early developers.
Karen Ponder: Today we're talking about Virginia's early childhood statewide system and highlighting its state and local structure that was created in 2005. Smart Beginnings includes a system of community partnerships at the local and regional levels and the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, the state's trusted partner to advance school readiness. Smart Beginnings is a locally driven enterprise that creates community commitment to school readiness. It brings together public and private leaders to collaborate on priorities and ensure conditions for a healthy start for young children and their families. Currently, Smart Beginnings cover 93 out of 135 localities in Virginia. Today we're joined by two leaders who helped build Virginia state and community approach and who are continuing to lead in evolving this systems work.
Karen Ponder: Kathy Glazer is the President of the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation in Richmond, Virginia. Within the Commonwealth, over the last 15 years, Kathy has led the evolution of their early childhood work, both within government and at the public-private Early Childhood Foundation. Kathy, it's always a pleasure to talk to you about your work in Virginia.
Kathy Glazer: Well, thanks, Karen. I appreciate the opportunity.
Karen Ponder: Abby Hamilton is the President and CEO of the United Way of Roanoke Valley in Roanoke, Virginia. Her organization is the Smart Beginnings partner in the Roanoke Valley region. And she's been part of this work since its beginnings. Abby, I'm delighted that you can join us to help us better understand the early childhood work from the community point of view.
Abby Hamilton: I'm so excited to be here with you and Kathy to share our experiences and learnings and some really good stories.
Karen Ponder: Kathy, just bring us up to date on your current and future early childhood systems work. What's going on?
Kathy Glazer: Sure. Glad to, Karen. We have an ongoing commitment to work on our process of providing equitable access to quality early childhood opportunities for all children and families across the Commonwealth. And so last year, the 2020 School Readiness Act was established in law. And this act created for us a single point of accountability for school readiness at the state level within the Virginia Department of Education. And it mandated a unified system of quality measurement and improvement for all of Virginia's public and private early care and education programs and system. And so as a complement to that state-driven unified system, Virginia is now establishing a comprehensive and fully statewide network of on-the-ground systems builders called Ready Regions. And this high-capacity structure is, in essence, a natural evolution of Smart Beginnings and will allow us to further address the unacceptable disparities for children and families that we find in every region across the Commonwealth.
Karen Ponder: Wow, Kathy. A lot's going on in Virginia as usual. I'm going to turn to Abby. And just, Abby, tell me how did you get started in this partnership work that's a real close partnership between the state and your community?
Abby Hamilton: Well, the United Ways across the country have always had a strong interest around the success of young children, so we've been involved in that work for many years. But mostly, I would categorize our involvement around supporting programs through scholarships and operating funds. And then in the late 1990s, Bank of America actually funded a national partnership with the United Ways called Success By 6. And their intent was to really increase awareness on the importance of early childhood education and then to be able to provide training and quality improvement supports for child care and pre-K settings.
Abby Hamilton: So I came to work at United Way here in the Roanoke Valley towards the end of that Success By 6 grant funding. And because it was at the end of that five-year period, I got to witness how needed the supports were because I had the opportunity to interact with a lot of the providers themselves. And then I got to be part of the conversations where local partners were now starting to figure out how do we sustain these efforts? I mean, we're doing a really good job, but we don't want that to go away once the grant funding is out. And so that background, I think, actually positioned us well as a community to be one of the State Planning grantees when Virginia began investing in this issue.
Karen Ponder: I'm glad you mentioned Success By 6 because as I look back at our own work during that time United Ways were critical to helping us move this big agenda. Success By 6 had kind of led the way and many of the United Ways and the local communities joined hands and joined forces in some cases and in other cases they became partners. And so that has continued to build and grow the community work on behalf of children. Kathy, what brings you specifically to this work and really helps you stay motivated?
Kathy Glazer: Well, I continue to be compelled by the importance of the mission. And as I now have my own grandchildren, it's like another sort of generation of interest and fascination with early childhood development. I would say that like other thinkers who are systems-focused, I just am always intrigued by the opportunities that come about by disruption and then also the challenges of leading change. And then, of course, finally, I can't help but say that the amazing set of partners in both the public and private sector that I get to work with, like Abby, are also truly inspiring and really keep me focused.
Karen Ponder: Working together in close partnership in early childhood systems building efforts, especially ones that connect the state more directly with local communities, is complex and can be challenging. I'm curious what conditions that you two have found need to be present for this work to be successful.
Kathy Glazer: Well, I would say that there's certainly nothing simple about it. Probably the most important condition that needs to be present is trusting relationships. So we've really tried over the years to focus on the ability to see this process of systems building as at its core a relationship-building exercise and this takes time, persistence, and a shared understanding that success will depend on sustained attention to maintaining these relationships.
Kathy Glazer: We want to support communities with the capacity to coalesce around a shared goal and vision and to be able to be creative and innovative about how to reach that goal and vision. It's dynamic. It's different in every community. And that's exciting. We have found that communities that have a growth mindset and a strong entrepreneurial leadership bench at the staff, fiscal agency, and collaborative leadership levels are better positioned to evolve, to be adaptive and nimble, and to be ready to challenge the status quo.
Kathy Glazer: They need to be able to convene diverse partners at the table to be successful. And that can sometimes take a long time to cultivate and require a great deal of patience and persistence. They also have to be willing to try and fail, and we want to be ready to support them in that. We often see that our communities try something new or pilot a program that comes with the risk of failure, but it's those communities that are willing to try and be thought partners with us at the state. And we call them our trailblazers. They've really been the ones to help push Virginia forward. And Abby's a great example in terms of leading a community partnership that is stellar in all of these regards and really distinctive in their ability to create a rare whole community culture of collaboration around early childhood development.
Abby Hamilton: Kathy, thank you. That's so kind of you. But I really think it has been a process for both partners. I mean, at the state level because such a system had not existed before, and then even at the local level. You know, working on those relationships and building that so we could all, at the same time, learn and grow to have a stronger type of partnership. And when I look back, I think the one thing that truly sparks this work has always been answering questions like are we dissatisfied enough when we are seeing poor outcomes locally? And then as partners at the local level, what would we be willing to do to get the type of results that we actually want? And so when we as partners in the Roanoke Valley, we're looking at the work we were already doing around training and quality improvement, we had to ask ourselves those same questions. I mean, is this enough? I mean, is this the work that's going to get us to where we need to be? And if it's not, where do we go from here?
Abby Hamilton: So I totally agree with Kathy that building trust, to have those kinds of conversations where we're questioning ourselves and our own effectiveness, and then using data to guide our own understanding and making sure that we spend a lot of time asking the right questions to understand the problem before we jump to the actual conclusion or the solutions. It's a real discipline involved. And once a group of partners develop that kind of shared vision, it can then be a compass for us for the work. It serves as a filter for when we make decisions. It's helpful for when we have to hold each other accountable because we have to go back to that shared vision time and time again.
Abby Hamilton: But when you're starting, there is no foundation of trust or there's no experience to build on where you have had shared successes and challenges. Those conversations don't really happen easily. So there's the time factor in it. And also the type of support that should be present in the case of what the ECF provided in Virginia to allow communities to safely experiment and also to be able to learn and be open about those learnings and mistakes and find a way forward because that's how we develop those stronger relationships. And we also end up with strong, personal friendships as a result of that.
Karen Ponder: You know, building relationships, doesn't it just come back to that? Regardless of how many resources we have or how broad our reach is, the real work happens planning around a table with people with whom we need to develop trusting relationships so we can be willing to give up some idea we have because we actually listen and hear a better idea. So I love hearing that. It just affirms what, I guess, we've all sort of figured out is that relationships matter a lot in this early childhood systems work. Kathy, I want to know a little bit more about the transformation into Ready Regions. What's going to be different with this evolving approach?
Kathy Glazer: So much of the work that we have done and the conditions that we've just talked about are really developmental and ever-evolving. So we are excited to be at a juncture in Virginia where the next natural phase of our organizational and our partnership maturity is taking those important lessons that we've learned through Smart Beginnings and extending those priorities and the principles that have come through so loud and clear to a network format that will be not only efficient to administer, but that will fully cover the state and allow for addressing the needs and the preferences of families with young children more equitably.
Kathy Glazer: The pandemic was the disruption, that perfect storm that made the need for this evolution clear. And I just want to give you an example, if I could, and this is really from Abby's community, so she'll be able to expand on some of this example for you. One type of capacity that we want to make sure every Ready Region has is a cohesive and well-functioning system of coordinated enrollment.
Kathy Glazer: So last year, when the families in our communities needed to be able to access quality, affordable child care, to get to the front lines or to return to work and provide for their families in the midst of the pandemic, their needs and their choices, their preferences were volatile. The supply of child care was also volatile. And in the Roanoke Valley where Abby and her partners had been already hard at work building an innovative, coordinated enrollment system across their whole region, the process of being able to match family demand with available supply was much more feasible than in communities that didn't have that ready capability or that basis, that trusted foundation of partners and programs coming together and being able to provide this facilitated process for families to be able to access child care of their choice.
Karen Ponder: So Abby, tell us a little bit more about the impact of your coordinated enrollment system. How did it help in working directly with families and child care providers, for example, especially during the pandemic?
Abby Hamilton: So the coordinated enrollment system was launched in February. So about a month before the shutdown happened, before the demand really kind of escalated. But the blessing in that, I think, is that we've had about six months before the launch to truly iron out and build relationships and work out kinks with about six public school systems, headstart, and private child care. So there's already that nurtured relationship where we were meeting about every week.
Abby Hamilton: And then during the first couple of months of the shutdown, we ended up working together. I mean, staying in touch with the same partners on a weekly basis, and then coordinating with other partners, like healthcare and other folks on the frontline so that we could actually connect those workers to the services provided through the coordinated enrollment system. Then we worked with another set of community partners to support the child care and preschool providers who were part of the coordinated enrollment system so that they could safely operate it on a regular basis.
Abby Hamilton: So we would have partners that were helping us gather and deliver PPEs and cleaning supplies. We had partners that were working to have conversations with regional supermarkets so that they could get special approval for providers to purchase what they needed of the limited items. So let's say milk, but retailers would say you can only buy a gallon of milk at a time. Well, if you're a child care provider, that's not going to be enough. So we had to kind of work out some of these things and utilize other relationships that we had in the community to truly overcome some of the barriers for families.
Abby Hamilton: But because the system was in place, we were then at the table whenever localities and businesses talked about how to reopen businesses safely, how to open school safely, and how child care and early childhood supports fit into that entire picture. And then for multiple resources, including the CARES Act dollars from the city of Roanoke, Roanoke City Public Schools, Roanoke County Public Schools, and then, of course, the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, we were able to secure funding that was enough to support some children throughout the school year, like this past fall.
Abby Hamilton: So all in all, we probably amassed about $2.1 million to cover the cost of care for children while the public schools conducted virtual and hybrid schedules. And the dollars were then paid directly to about 35 different partner providers who had slots for care for an additional 600 children that we would have not normally served in the system. So some other facilities also received support for building improvements and other supports beyond tuition. And then, of course, the teachers that worked at these centers and the academies were also then given access to some hero bonuses through state funding so that we could incentivize them to stay employed, to be there, and to provide consistent care for children. So that I think is just a clear demonstration of how one system's strategy can be used to one, align local, state, and federal funds towards the same goal, right? To respond during the pandemic. But it's also giving opportunity at the local level to blend and braid those various funding sources so we can do even more.
Karen Ponder: Wow, it's a great example of that. It's probably one of the best examples I've ever heard. And to realize that because you had already developed those relationships within the community then you could act quickly when there was an emergency that needed to be dealt with. So it really underscores the importance both of the partnership you've created and the important strategies, like coordinated enrollment. Kathy is this statewide in Virginia? And will it be a part of your evolving system?
Kathy Glazer: It's not statewide yet. I will say that many of our communities have had the chance through our Preschool Development Grant to begin developing coordinated enrollment strategies, but the Ready Regions model will allow us to take the model that Abby has described and so beautifully built and replicate it and then support it to be statewide.
Kathy Glazer: You know, when I think about the pandemic and the health and the economic crises of last year, the last year and a half or so, as well as the racial justice movement, they all have led us to be in a place where we want to reimagine how we can create more responsive and equitable systems. And, of course, now with the federal and we also have some additional really welcomed state investment in early childhood, those dollar investments along with the people and partnership efforts are giving us the opportunity to develop a new system that truly works for everyone. I think that the example of Roanoke's coordinated enrollment system is a practical example of how we can commit to and live into the responsibility of better meeting families needs and preferences. So again, it's a great example of the type of function or role that the Ready Regions will be prepared and also supported to deliver on.
Karen Ponder: So I want to turn to a little bit of a different subject. You know, states are recognizing that infants and toddlers require a much greater emphasis in our early childhood systems than we've given them in the past. And they've also learned that working with the youngest children in our continuum of system is both intensive and expensive. Are there particular areas of infant-toddler work that you are now addressing or that you're beginning to think about? Kathy, you want to start?
Kathy Glazer: I would just say, in all honesty, that Virginia has historically had a disproportionate focus on services, preschool services for three and four-year-olds. And that's been terrific and we've made some good progress. But it has also been a challenge to bring investment and attention to infants and toddlers. So we've been doing some spade work over the last year or two that we believe will lead to some greater attention and more opportunities for birth to three.
Kathy Glazer: Some of those strategies are piloting staffed child care networks, working with family child care providers and small centers that families prefer, especially now, and partnering with Wonderschool to build the supply of this kind of child care, especially in our rural communities and those that are child care deserts. So about half of Virginians live in child care deserts and this makes it particularly difficult for families with infants and toddlers. We are busily advocating for funding and policy to maximize available resources and also create new opportunities that can support families with youngest children, infants and toddlers.
Karen Ponder: So what's going on at the local level around infants and toddlers, Abby?
Abby Hamilton: So over the years, what we've seen in the build out of the pre-K system in Virginia is the set up of supports, policies, protocols, funding, and ways of working that is allowing us to deliver on some really important indicators in terms of access and school readiness. I think the stage that we're in right now is that we need to evolve our approach to infant and toddlers to have the same parallel system.
Abby Hamilton: So on a smaller scale, if you think about the work that we have in the Roanoke Valley, we do have some funding from various resources regarding training and quality improvement support towards infant and toddler providers. That's kind of integrated into the work we're currently doing. But there's certainly a lot more opportunity to grow. And so what we want to be able to look at now is how do we make work around infant and toddler parallel to the system that is in place for pre-K? And if you think about the starting point we had with Success By 6 and even with Smart Beginnings, we started with just a small component of it. How do we tie these different components now so that we can not just innovate but also make sure that when we do get outcomes they are not just exceptions but they're part of the norm and how we do business?
Karen Ponder: So is there a relationship between the challenges to the early childhood system caused by the pandemic or exacerbated by the pandemic and how you're thinking about transitioning to Ready Regions? Kathy, what's going on there?
Kathy Glazer: Yes, for sure, there is a relationship. The pandemic created pain for so many people and made the child care crisis, which had long been present, even more visible. And it also made, the pandemic also made the inequities in our system more clear. So in many ways, these insights from the experience of the pandemic became a charge or a mandate for us, something really undeniable to really cause us to pivot to the Ready Regions model.
Kathy Glazer: We believe that the launch of Ready Regions will communicate to our stakeholders across the state that early childhood systems building in Virginia is advancing to the next level and becoming a comprehensive regional model that serves children and families in every neighborhood. Ready Regions will be the vehicle that we'll use to identify strategies to adequately and sustainable fund early care and education, to diversify and maximize financing, to reconceptualize and strengthen the business practices of the industry, and to recognize the true cost of quality services as a public good necessary for Virginia's successful societal function and a healthy economy.
Karen Ponder: Kathy, this is such an exciting new venture and our hats are off to you and your staff for all that it takes to create and to support this kind of work and to reform it when it's needed. Abby, how are you and your partners thinking about Ready Regions? Is the transition going to be difficult for your organization and all the partners that you've brought together around one vision and now you're expanding that vision?
Abby Hamilton: You know, I think there's one thing that we all got out of the pandemic is that change is constant and that we should be, all be ready to pivot and be flexible. So I think the change to Ready Regions is really part of the natural evolution of the work, right? So same thing when we started this whole work and all the changes that have happened over the last 15, 16 years as we've engaged with the state. In order for any system to be really truly healthy, change is inevitable. And we have to be able to do that and embrace that change and be excited about it. So that's at least from the perspective of the local partners how we all feel.
Abby Hamilton: But I think if I even put it to an even more practical sense, as much as we are so grateful for the successes that we've seen for the work that we are able to do locally, it is truly heartbreaking, especially when we saw this during the pandemic, that we had to turn away parents and families that were needing care because one, they didn't live in our locality, it wasn't in our footprint, we don't have any supply in the area that they're talking about. So it has been really hard for us. And it's kind of like holding a mirror up. Again, that pivotal moment of saying are we satisfied with what we currently have, or is it time to continue to grow? And I think that's a situation we're in now is realizing that. And the learnings from our experience this past year is showing us that quality care is a fundamental need. It's not just for those with children. And it's essential for workforces and economies to be able to function, to be able to operate businesses, and even to keep our community healthy and safe.
Abby Hamilton: So this had to be, this has to be available to everyone. And we have to make sure that we are open to expanding partnerships, to growing beyond our traditional borders so that we can really approach and provide equitable access to families. And so the way that I see it, a Ready Regions approach allows us to cover the entire state, that's the advantage, and that every family then has the opportunity to be connected to every resource that they need to be successful. I think that's the fundamental bottom line of the benefit of this is we get to eliminate barriers that have been there for many years.
Karen Ponder: As pioneers in the systems building work, I'm sure you both have important reminders and lessons learned for our other states that are considering either a similar approach or are thinking about making revisions to their work going forward. What have you learned, and what is important for them to keep in mind?
Kathy Glazer: Well, definitely important to keep in mind that change is inevitable and also change means growth. I never forget what our friend Dean Clifford taught me long ago, when things seem to be at their stormiest, like the last year or so has been, to take heart because any major transformation is preceded by a period of disruption. I'll always remember that wisdom that she shared when it seems that we're in stormy waters. And I'm excited right now to know that we are on the brink of a breakthrough of a great opportunity. So to colleagues in other states, I'd say keep the end goal in mind, stay humble, and, most of all, keep those that are impacted the most by the work close. If we learned nothing else in the pandemic, it's that we have not done this enough and we now need to make sure that we're more authentically and effectively engaging and reaching populations, including centering families in decision-making at the systems level.
Karen Ponder: Such great advice, Kathy. And Abby, do you have some different advice for those who are building state and local systems?
Abby Hamilton: I feel like Kathy and I went through this journey together. I really look back and we were there right at the very beginning. And so a lot of the things that she shared were the same things that I've learned from experience. You know, in work like this, it's about building systems. There really is no room for ego. It's not about you. It's about the families that we're trying to serve. It is about communities that we're trying to strengthen. And in this case, it's about an entire state that requires a different approach and a different set of outcomes to come forth.
Abby Hamilton: And then the thing that I love is exactly what Kathy said, let's be grounded, let's be grounded and be reminded of the families and what they really need, to always keep our ears on the ground, and to be actively listening to people. And then while you have your ears to the ground always, always give yourself a chance to put your head above the clouds, to keep dreaming and reaching for the skies because our families deserve it.
Abby Hamilton: And then, lastly, I think it's this whole reality that change is inevitable, that in order for systems to flourish, in order for outcomes to be improved, in order for things to be better, we have to be used to, we have to get used to being uncomfortable and recognizing that discomfort doesn't necessarily, isn't necessarily a bad thing. But it really is, it bodes well for good things in the state. And I hope that our dreams for families that we're serving, for our communities, and for the state are always bigger than the fears, insecurities that we might have in terms of doing something different.
Karen Ponder: I couldn't agree more with all of your advice today. I sometimes say that early childhood systems building is not for the faint of heart. It takes grit and determination, but it also takes a soft glove touch and building, being willing to be a trusted partner and build relationships. And our work flourishes when we're able to put a child and a family at the center and make decisions based on what is best for them. So as we think about bringing this to a close today, I'm curious what gives you joy in the work you do every day? Kathy? Abby?
Kathy Glazer: Oh, I'll just start and say what in the world could be more joyful than the honor of doing this important work alongside colleagues like the two of you. I've known you both and worked with you over many, many years, and I hope that we have more adventures to come and really appreciate the chance to have this joyful conversation today.
Abby Hamilton: Well, as you can see, I'm never short for words when the topic comes to this topic of change and systems building and partnerships, and I think that's really a fuel to the fire that I have. And I think about, again, the little joys in life. When I get to go out in public talking about our coordinated enrollment system, which is something I did over the weekend at a local fair that we had, and somebody actually comes up to me and says, oh, we actually use the coordinated enrollment system. Here is the child that actually benefited from it. It gives me such joy and reminds me this is why we need to be doing this and this is why we need to do more of it.
Karen Ponder: Well, you've both clearly made the case that early childhood systems cannot remain stagnant. If our systems are going to respond adequately to the changing needs of young children and families, they have to be nimble and able to respond to families changing needs. Virginia has demonstrated over and over the importance of linking its state and communities work on behalf of young children and also the importance of adjusting and adapting its approach to all the new realities that evolve over time. This has been such an inspiring and enlightening conversation. And I thank you both, Abby and Kathy, for your leadership and for sharing your knowledge and experiences with us today.
Kathy Glazer: Thanks to you, Karen.
Abby Hamilton: Thank you, Kathy and Karen. This has been such a delight.
Karen Ponder: Thanks for joining us for this episode. Please leave a review and rate us on Apple Podcasts. It helps others find us. You can follow us there or anywhere you listen to podcasts. Critical Connections is a podcast from the BUILD Initiative. It is produced by Lantigua Williams & Co. Kojin Tashiro is our producer and sound designer. Jen Chien is our editor. BUILD Initiative is a national organization that is a catalyst for change and supports state leaders to develop equitable early childhood systems. BUILD assists state leaders from both the private and public sectors as they work to set policies, offer services, and advocate for young children and their families. If you would like to learn more about our guests or our organization, visit BUILD's website at buildinitiative.org. I'm Karen Ponder. Thank you for listening.