About The Business Partnership For Early Learning
The Business Partnership for Early Learning (BPEL) is a coalition of King County business leaders stepping forward to invest in an innovative, research-based early learning strategy as a way to close the school preparedness gap. We do this through home visitors providing pre-literacy and parenting programs for two years to families with toddlers who most need help. The selected programs should produce an $8 to $17 return on each dollar and result in school readiness, academic achievement and graduation rates at parity with non-disadvantaged children.
"If they're not school ready, they won't be job ready. Helping them helps us all."
| | Bank of America | | Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | | The Boeing Company | | First Choice Health | Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce
Group Health Cooperative | | ICOS | Key Foundation
Lester M. Smith Foundation | | Liberty Media | | Pugh Capital Management | | Qwest Foundation | | Regence BlueShield | | Safeco | | The Seattle Foundation | | Social Venture Partners | | John Stanton and Theresa Gillespie | | The Tabor 100 | | Washington Mutual | | Wright Hotels, Inc. |
The achievement gap in our schools mostly harms low-income kids, students of color and those with limited English proficiency. Much of this unconscionable achievement gap is really a “preparedness gap” that already exists when children begin kindergarten. To help counter this, BPEL is working through Atlantic Street Center and Neighborhood House to support home-based, parent-child programs and informal play and learn groups for 2- to 3-year olds and their families. BPEL does not accept grant proposals.
Over the next five years, BPEL will invest $4 million in research-based early learning—long enough to evaluate the programs’ impact on early school years.
With almost 75 percent of the $4 million already committed, BPEL is seeking additional partners to support its work and join with business leadership in calling attention to the needs and opportunities of early education for our most vulnerable children. If you would like to invest in early learning in Seattle through a tax-deductible donation to BPEL, please contact Molly Stearns at The Seattle Foundation at (206) 622-2294.
The Seattle Foundation is the fiscal sponsor for BPEL.
To learn more about BPEL's recent activities and results, you may wish to review the 2009 Annual Report and a summary of evaluation findings of the Parent-Child Home Program/Play & Learn Group demonstration project.
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