Zaentz Initiative
Mission
In partnership with the Harvard Graduate School of Education, The Saul Zaentz Early Education Initiative promotes the knowledge, professional learning, and collective action necessary to cultivate optimal early learning environments and experiences.
Vision
A nation where all early education leaders have the knowledge and strategies they need to provide children and their colleagues with strong, supportive learning environments.
Values
Based upon aspiration, equity, scientific integrity, connectivity and communication.
approach
The Zaentz Initiative pursues interlocking strategies for impact by conducting research to drive policy and practice, designing and spreading high-quality professional learning, and pioneering a fellows program to build a pipeline of new leaders.
Zaentz Navigator
This brand new, user-friendly, interactive, and innovative digital tool helps policymakers and leaders learn how cities and states across the country are tackling the same issues they face as they work to structure, finance, expand, and improve early education and care.
Policymakers and leaders across the nation are committed to improving the lives of the young children, families, and educators they serve. Today, at a time of great opportunity and great challenge for the field of early education and care, they are working tirelessly to make good on this goal. They are crafting plans and policies to advance and accelerate the work—often on tight timelines, with many decisions to make and potential directions to go, and with questions about what others are doing and what the research says. To support their work, the Zaentz Navigator shares early education policy strategies and innovations from all 50 states and some cities and makes them easy to find, learn about, and compare. To ensure connections to today’s research, the Navigator links these policy strategies and innovations to findings from a groundbreaking statewide study of early education and care.