ECLC Areas of Opportunity (2019 Transition In State Leadership)

Colorado has a long history of working together to ensure children and families grow and thrive. Our state has made admirable advances across the three domains of the Early Childhood Colorado Framework: Health & Well-Being, Family Support & Education and Learning & Development. Families, professionals, advocates and policy makers have worked together to build coordinated systems that support local areas to be responsive to the needs of their communities. The collaboration between state and local entities across private and public domains is a testament to Colorado’s long and unwavering commitment to supporting children and families.

However, there is much more work to be done to ensure all children and families have the supports they need to reach our shared vision: all children are valued, healthy and thriving.

After engaging with stakeholders to understand the history and progress of early childhood in Colorado as well as the wide array of policy strategies and opportunities that exist to ensure the state continues to move forward, the Commission has identified three Areas of Opportunity that are most critical to share with incoming state leaders to continue the advancement of work in early childhood across the state. 

The ECLC Data Subcommittee is excited to share the “Continuing to Monitor and Measure Progress in Colorado’s Early Childhood Areas of Opportunity: 2021” report, which provides information to help the ECLC monitor progress across the 3 Areas of Opportunity identified by the Commission in 2018 that the ECLC believes are most important to advance over the next several years in Colorado. The Executive Summary contains a brief overview of the information, highlighting critical findings and opportunities for action. The new report includes additional indicators for the third Area of Opportunity and updates data from the first report, “Monitoring and Measuring Progress in Colorado's Early Childhood Areas of Opportunity: 2019”

We encourage you to read through the report and share how your work is advancing the outcomes of the Framework and supporting children and families at EarlyChildhoodFramework.org!

The Early Childhood Leadership Commission is committed to working with the incoming Governor,
the Colorado General Assembly, state agencies and stakeholders to address the early childhood challenges Colorado faces to ensure that all children are valued, healthy and thriving.