Early Education

Over a 20 year period that concluded in 2020, Barr invested over $47 million through its Early Education Program. Principally focused on Boston, with targeted statewide investments, the Foundation supported a set of partners advancing (through practice and policy) developmentally appropriate early learning and school readiness. Twenty years ago, the field was largely focused on increasing access to childcare. Over time, that focus has both shifted and expanded to include not only increasing supply, but also enhancing quality programming that promotes healthy child development. That elevation of quality is now increasing attention to child outcomes—in other words, are children getting what they need to develop?

Equally important, we learned about what it takes to build quality across settings—public schools, community-based programs, and home-based care and education—so that more families now access more options that support their children and meet their unique needs.

In 2015, as part of a strategy redesign at the Foundation, Barr decided to conclude its grantmaking in early education. We take enormous pride in the work of our partners, and we committed ourselves to a responsible exit from this field, awarding $4.6 million in transition grants to enable them to be as resilient as possible upon the sunset of funding.

Below, you can find further information about Barr's Early Education Program—what our goals and strategies were, who our grantees and other key partners were, what we achieved together, and what we learned about the role philanthropy can play in catalyzing and stewarding progress in a field.

We are no longer considering new funding proposals for this program. For any question related to Early Education at Barr, contact Kimberly Haskins.

For nearly two decades, we worked with organizations that focused on a variety of work that comprise the early education ecosystem. Our partners' work coalesced into the following areas. Use the carousel below to explore the full portfolio of grantees.

• Families as first teachers: healthy childhood development starts at home.
• Early literacy: evidence-based curricula, teacher supports, and data to build high-quality, effective programs.
• Early childhood facilities: developmentally appropriate spaces to play and learn.
• Policy and systems: key elements of a healthy, child-centered early education ecosystem.
• High-quality Pre-K in Boston: a capstone investment to support an effective mixed-delivery system in the City.