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Fall 2006
Minnesota Early Childhood Funders Network Focuses on
Increased Support for Children from Birth to Age Five
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Mom and son playing at the Anpa-Waste housing playground.
Photo courtesy of The Jay and Rose Phillips Family Foundation.
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What started as an informal network of individuals concerned about funding early care and education six years ago is now a connected group of grantmakers working actively to enhance their respective grantmaking efforts in early childhood development.
The Minnesota Early Childhood Funders Network represents 20 funders that share a commitment to increasing support and opportunities for the youngest Minnesotans and their families.
"Several of us decided in 2004 that it was time to be more proactive as a learning network and go beyond just information sharing," said network steering committee member Amy Crawford, executive director of The Jay and Rose Phillips Family Foundation. "We were all very concerned about the devastating lack of public funding, the implications for vulnerable families, and the fact that Minnesota was losing ground in comparison to other states with its level of public investment in school readiness programs.
"By working together in partnership with other colleagues, we realized that we could have more impact on these issues and program investments than we could alone," Crawford added.
The network has been an invaluable way for funders to understand each other's respective interests and discover where they have to work together. "We ask our grantees to collaborate whenever appropriate," noted Denise Mayotte, steering committee member and executive director of The Sheltering Arms Foundation. "The Early Childhood Funders Network has provided an opportunity for funders to practice this kind of collaboration among ourselves — at a level unusual for many funders."
For some individuals, the Early Childhood Funders Network has broadened their perspectives on a particular topic, such as the inclusion of social skills development and mental health as a key aspect of school readiness. For others, it has provided an opportunity to consider an expanded continuum of ways they can impact early childhood issues, ranging from program investments to commissioning research to technical assistance for increased public policy advocacy.
A key success for the network to date has been developing a shared vision for increasing private support for young children. Last year, the group completed a strategic planning process, formalized network membership, created a sense of ownership and momentum among participants, and hosted a series of high-quality educational sessions based on member interests.
"It's the people and relationships that matter," says Crawford. "Being involved with the network has been an energizing experience, and it's gratifying to realize there are so many dedicated individuals who want to make a positive difference in the lives of kids. We welcome other interested foundations to attend one of our quarterly meetings and to consider getting involved."
The Minnesota Early Childhood Funders Network shares a common goal of increasing support for young children, striving to coordinate efforts whenever possible, but does not act as a funding pool. The network is also linked to other early childhood funders networks across the U.S. In general, participation is open to any staff or trustee of a Minnesota Council on Foundations member foundation or corporation.
The network currently does not have staff and uses consultants for special projects. MCF also provides support. For more information, contact Denise Mayotte at 612.871.9210 or dmayotte@sheltering-arms.org.
More
Information from the
Fall 2006 Edition of Giving Forum
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Thank you to the sponsors of this issue of Giving Forum:
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| $5,000 Sponsor |
Anonymous Sponsor
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| $3,000 Partner |
Minnesota Initiative Foundations |
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© Copyright 2006 Minnesota Council on
Foundations
Reproduction in any form without the written permission of the publisher
is prohibited.
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