Starting Strong’s goal is for all children in Portland to be kindergarten ready and reading at grade-level by the end of 3rd grade.
We believe the entire community plays a role in supporting a child’s success. Starting Strong partners with schools, parents, businesses, community organizations, policy makers and residents to increase access to high quality early childhood care and education, and, to support and promote parents as their child’s first and most important teachers. We take a systems-level approach to our work, often convening diverse stakeholder groups to inform our advocacy and action.
Together, we remove barriers, expand opportunities, and assist parents and the community to support student success. As the early age component of Portland ConnectED, we work to improve the social, emotional, and academic environment of Portland’s most vulnerable children from birth to age 8.
Today, Starting Strong is poised to move forward to increase its impact through community partnerships — with a keen focus on the children and families who need us most.
Our current work focuses on the following:
Advocating for increased access to affordable, high quality early childhood care and education through Portland Works for Kids
Increasing access to quality, pre-K through First4ME Portland
Providing tools and resources to parents and caregivers to support talking, reading, and singing to your child beginning at birth through our Talking is Teaching materials
Our Work
Starting Strong’s goal is for all children in Portland to be kindergarten ready and reading at grade-level by the end of 3rd grade.
We believe the entire community plays a role in supporting a child’s success. Starting Strong partners with schools, parents, businesses, community organizations, policy makers and residents to increase access to high quality early childhood care and education, and, to support and promote parents as their child’s first and most important teachers. We take a systems-level approach to our work, often convening diverse stakeholder groups to inform our advocacy and action.
Together, we remove barriers, expand opportunities, and assist parents and the community to support student success. As the early age component of Portland ConnectED, we work to improve the social, emotional, and academic environment of Portland’s most vulnerable children from birth to age 8.
Starting Strong became a Campaign for Grade Level Reading site in 2013 with the acceptance of our partnership’s Community Solution Action Plan – a community-wide strategy to address achievement gaps between students. We are also a member of the National League of Cities Early Learning Nation Network.
Today, Starting Strong is poised to move forward to increase its impact through community partnerships — with a keen focus on the children and families who need us most.
Our current work focuses on the following:
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