Education First is a seasoned team of trusted advisors to the leaders responsible for delivering what many Americans want most: public education that effectively prepares all students for success in college, careers and a world of constant change.
Education First helped CZI develop a multi-year investment strategy for research and programmatic investments in non-summative assessment and measurement. We also developed a community of practice to explore new approaches to non-summative assessment rooted in the power of local communities.
Education First supported the education team and donor to refresh the foundation’s professional learning strategy, setting updated goals and adding new investments areas such as district communities of practice.
The education strategy of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation aims to empower and equip every student for a lifetime of learning. Now five years into the effort, the foundation team is seeking to assess progress so far, identify course corrections and redirect its specific grantmaking activities moving forward to better this goal. To help, the foundation has tapped Education First. The scope of work includes elevating lessons from grantee reports and foundation-commissioned research, interviewing grantees and field leaders, and engaging a “kitchen cabinet” of advisors to identify future learning opportunities and future grantmaking priorities.
With five California-based foundations, we co-designed and continue to advise the Emerging Bilingual Collaborative, which helps educators deliver high-quality instructional practices to multilingual learners in grades PreK-3. The Collaborative funded 11 districts and county offices to help systems use the Multilingual Learning Toolkit, a website with resources for teachers and administrators who support multilingual learners. We also facilitate a community of practice for the grantees to support them through peer learning and interest group meetings.
