Since 2018, 25 unique collaborations throughout Illinois have graduated from the Partner Plan Act Collaboration Institute (PPACI). We celebrate the lessons learned and each win through the years!
PELA was part of the first Partner Plan Act Collaboration Institute cohort. As one of the collaborations receiving Advancing Supports, PELA wanted to understand problems in the early childhood system from the community’s point of view. They decided the best way to do that was to create a survey specifically for parents and childcare providers. The results were fantastic—PELA collected 384 surveys and built stronger relationships community wide.
The North Lawndale Early Learning Collaboration participated in the PPACI with the goal of identifying innovative methods for finding and engaging children from priority populations. After completing PPACI’s assessments, the Core Team decided to conduct a community needs assessment to help identify barriers to participation. The team also determined that a charter describing its governance structure, processes, and practices would strengthen their collaboration. With the support of the coach and PPACI resources, the Core Team:
The Altgeld-Riverdale Early Learning Coalition participated in the Partner Plan Act Collaboration Institute to redesign and formalize its structure and governance practices to clarify member roles and responsibilities, decision-making protocols, and to increase the community role in leading the Coalition.
Early on, the coaching team learned that BPI, the fiscal and administrative sponsor for the Coalition, would be transitioning out of its role. With the support of their coaches, the Coalition’s team successfully involved a subcommittee of members and Coalition members in a process to develop a governance charter. They also crafted a detailed plan to ensure a viable transition to a new fiscal and administrative sponsor—Metropolitan Family Services, a trusted community partner.
The Early Childhood Forum’s coaching team participated in the process-guided track of the Partner Plan Act Collaboration Institute to develop and embed a community systems change framework in their collaborative’s mode of operation. The community assessment the team completed highlighted the need to increase developmental screening and referrals. The coaching team engaged early childhood stakeholders who confirmed that screening was a priority and began to identify the issues contributing to this targeted problem.
Next, the Early Childhood Forum launched their system scan to learn from families, providers, and medical professionals about their experiences with screening. The collaboration has received two local grants to help bring needed resources to parents in central Illinois. They look forward to leveraging their years of experience and newly acquired supports to build a more robust and aligned way of screening and supporting young children.