Third Sector mobilizes cross-sector collaborators to transform the way our government and other providers deliver quality and affordable early childhood services in the United States.
Our Approach to Early Childhood Development
Most of us in America believe that all children (ages 0-5 years), no matter their race, background, or circumstance, should have the freedom to play, learn, and thrive in safe, nurturing environments. But for too long, our nation has failed to provide an adequate supply of affordable, high-quality early childhood opportunities leaving parents and caregivers with limited choices and young children without the tools they need to thrive. In addition, our nation has historically devalued early childhood work, excluding domestic workers from labor and civil rights protections and acknowledgement as trained professionals, which results in underpaid early childhood educators and a system that deprives millions of children of developmentally appropriate care and support.
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Third Sector mobilizes cross-sector collaborators - including families, caregivers, communities, providers, and policymakers - to transform the way our government and other providers deliver quality and affordable early childhood services in the United States. We lead with developmentally appropriate and evidence-based practices and tools in our partnerships and cross-sector collaborations. This grounding allows us to remain agile and develop new culturally responsive approaches to our work that take into account the specific needs of each community we support.
Ultimately, we believe in a future where we have eliminated racial inequities and other discriminatory practices in the early childhood sector and where we guarantee access to high-quality, affordable programs for every child - Black or White, rich or poor. These high-quality early childhood programs should improve child development outcomes, support working families, and provide economic benefits that strengthen local and national economies.
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Featured Projects
| Project Name | Scope | Location | Status |
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| Enhancing Governance Structures for the Connecticut Parent Cabinet | State | CT | Active |
| In 2021, the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC) launched the nation's first Parent Cabinet. This influential team of parents and community leaders is collaborating on the design of (and will influence) policies that impact children and families across the state. In this next phase, Third Sector will support OEC and its Parent Cabinet members by analyzing the effectiveness of systems, mapping critical internal and external communications processes necessary to establish an effective feedback function, and instituting a robust governance timeline and framework to ensure that current organizational efforts and leadership expertise are sustained beyond the inaugural years of the Parent Cabinet. | |||
| Stabilizing the Early Care and Childhood System in Massachusetts | State | MA | Closed |
| Third Sector led the design process for Massachusetts Department of Early Care and Education’s Commonwealth Cares for Children (C3) grant, a monthly payment to providers to stabilize operations as a result of COVID-19 disruptions. Technical assistance included stakeholder engagement, designing a workforce bonus and restructured, equitable funding formula, which stabilized the programs and helped keep child care accessible to all Massachusetts families no matter their race, background, or circumstance. | |||
All Early Childhood Development Projects
| Project Name | Scope | Location | Status | |
| Enhancing Governance Structures for the Connecticut Parent Cabinet | State | CT | Active | |
Description:
In 2021, the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC) launched the nation's first Parent Cabinet. This influential team of parents and community leaders is collaborating on the design of (and will influence) policies that impact children and families across the state. In this next phase, Third Sector will support OEC and its Parent Cabinet members by analyzing the effectiveness of systems, mapping critical internal and external communications processes necessary to establish an effective feedback function, and instituting a robust governance timeline and framework to ensure that current organizational efforts and leadership expertise are sustained beyond the inaugural years of the Parent Cabinet.
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| Stabilizing the Early Care and Childhood System in Massachusetts | State | MA | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector led the design process for Massachusetts Department of Early Care and Education’s Commonwealth Cares for Children (C3) grant, a monthly payment to providers to stabilize operations as a result of COVID-19 disruptions. Technical assistance included stakeholder engagement, designing a workforce bonus and restructured, equitable funding formula, which stabilized the programs and helped keep child care accessible to all Massachusetts families no matter their race, background, or circumstance.
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| Performance-Based Contracting at Washington DCYF | State | WA | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector worked with the Washington Department of Children, Youth, and Families to implement Performance-Based Contracting standards across the agency's more than 1,200 contracts to improve services for clients and achieve improved outcomes for outcomes for children and families.
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| Southeastern Cohort on Young Parents and Families | GA, KY, SC | |||
Description:
Third Sector worked with a cohort of states (Georgia, Kentucky, and South Carolina) to provide outcomes-oriented technical assistance to enhance and align each state’s programs, policies, and systems to better support young parents and families
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| Strong Start Pay for Success | County | Santa Clara County, CA | Active | |
Description:
Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) partnered with Third Sector, Sunnyvale School District, and SRI International to explore outcomes contracting as a means to expand access to and enhance the quality of preschool services available to low-income children in the County. During the engagement, Third Sector worked with these partners and other local stakeholders to develop recommendations to improve priority outcomes including academic achievement and social emotional development.
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| Washington Home Visiting Services Account (HVSA) PFS | State | Washington | Closed | |
Description:
DEL, Thrive, and Third Sector completed a feasibility study to determine whether Pay for Success could help improve life outcomes for Washington's high-risk families through quality home visiting services funded by the Home Visiting Services Account (HVSA). Given there are more families eligible for home visiting programs than are currently served, DEL was interested in exploring strategies for expanding financial support through Pay for Success. Third Sector conducted a feasibility analysis on five home visiting programs funded by HVSA. Results of the assessment were that a performance-based approach to HVSA expansion would necessitate data improvements to enable DEL, Thrive, and HVSA service providers to better identify and serve high-risk families in Washington and improve their health and educational outcomes. — This project closed in 2016.
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| Administrative Data Pilot: Washington | State | Washington | Active | |
Description:
Third Sector, in partnership with Stanford’s Center on Poverty and Inequality (CPI), is helping the Washington State Department of Early Learning (DEL) to improve early education and well-being outcomes for children and families served by two home visiting programs and an early support program for infants and toddlers at risk of development delays. The agency realized through a Pay for Success feasibility assessment with Third Sector in 2015 that program data is not linked with administrative datasets to allow DEL to understand certain priority outcomes, therefore the agency was interested in receiving technical assistance from Stanford to access and analyze data held externally. Third Sector will lead efforts to leverage data insights for selection of outcomes and metrics to build performance-based contracts.
DEL joins Santa Cruz County’s Human Services Department and San Diego County’s Health and Human Services Agency in Third Sector and CPI's Social Innovation Fund Administrative Data Pilot cohort, which will also include a Learning Community designed to facilitate cross-site collaboration and technical/process trainings around data analysis and deployment.
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| Mecklenburg County Pre-K | County | Mecklenburg County, NC | Active | |
Description:
Mecklenburg County has partnered with Third Sector, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to conduct a Feasibility Study to determine whether and how Pay for Success can be leveraged to enhance pre-kindergarten and early elementary programming for low-income children. Through the Feasibility Study, Third Sector has worked with local stakeholders to develop recommendations to improve priority outcomes include academic achievement, social emotional development, and attendance.
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| Empowering Families – North Carolina | State | North Carolina | Active | |
Description:
In North Carolina, the Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) seeks to improve outcomes for vulnerable families across the state. NCDHHS is a large agency and funds a range of services. Two priority areas the state is working to improve outcomes for are early childhood and the opioid epidemic. To identify opportunities to improve outcomes at scale, NCDHHS has decided to focus these efforts in Guilford County which has already laid the groundwork for improving early childhood outcomes. NCDHHS has an opportunity to learn more about what program models are working to improve 2Gen outcomes through an outcomes-oriented demonstration project in Guilford County. Third Sector is working with Guilford County partners to support the development of this demonstration project, which focuses on improving 2Gen outcomes for pregnant women and children affected by substance use. At the same time, Third Sector is also working closely with NCDHHS to develop an agency-wide vision for outcomes-orientation and identify ways to scale the work being done in Guilford County to improve outcomes statewide.
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| Empowering Families – Connecticut | State | Connecticut | Active | |
Description:
The Office of Early Childhood (OEC) administers state and federally-funded childcare for 30,000+ low-income families in the state of Connecticut. The establishment of the OEC in 2013 united staff and funding from five unique state agencies, naturally creating silos in program delivery. Third Sector has partnered with the Early Care and Education Division of the OEC to assess opportunities to further integrate funding and embed outcomes-orientation across its program starting with Care for Kids, its statewide child care subsidy program. The OEC is working with government agencies, community organizations, and providers through the development and implementation of its three-year Child Care Development Fund Plan to lead collaborative initiatives. These efforts are designed to increase access to high quality care and improve child and family outcomes, including but not limited to improved referral pathways for housing insecure families, expansion of allowable employment and education activities for families on transitional assistance for needy families (TANF), and grants and contracts to expand infant and toddler care.
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| Cuyahoga County Pre-K | County | Cuyahoga County, OH | Active | |
Description:
Cuyahoga County has partnered with Third Sector and Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) to conduct a Feasibility Assessment to inform how Pay for Success can be used to sustain and expand their Universal Prekindergarten Program (UPK), which enhances the quality of and access to existing prekindergarten slots in public and community settings. Through the Feasibility Assessment, Third Sector has engaged state and local stakeholders to identify priority early care and education outcomes, understand the education funding landscape, and identify ways to strengthen and expand community partnerships.
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| Oregon Youth Development Pay for Success | State | Oregon | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector worked with Friends of the Children (FOTC) to conduct PFS feasibility to scale up its national evidence-based intervention in Oregon for youth identified at age 5 as “high risk” or already experiencing poor academic and social well-being outcomes. — This project closed in 2015.
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| Oregon Pay for Performance | State | Oregon | Closed | |
Description:
The Center for Evidence-Based Policy at the Oregon Health and Science University received technical assistance to advance an early childhood foster care avoidance PFS project for between two to four geographically diverse Oregon communities with high foster care entry rates. The Center had agreed to take on a lead coordinator role with Third Sector’s two other Oregon awardees. — This project closed in 2016.
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| Bridges Maternal Child Health Network | County | Orange County, CA | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector led a feasibility assessment, in partnership with the Children and Families Commission of Orange County (Commission) and other partners, to explore the viability of using PFS to increase the financial sustainability of the Bridges Network. The Bridges Network provides screening and services related to home visiting and outcomes-based funding could provide an opportunity to sustain and improve these services that are critical to the health of infants and mothers in Orange County. — This project closed in 2016.
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| Oregon Early Childhood | County | Marion/Multnomah County, OR | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector is worked with Friends of the Children (FOTC) to conduct PFS feasibility to scale up its national evidence-based intervention in Oregon for youth identified at age 5 as “high risk” or already experiencing poor academic and social well-being outcomes. — This project closed in 2016.
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| Virginia Pay for Success | State | Virginia | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector worked with the United Way of the Bay Area on assessing PFS readiness of its programming, specifically in the workforce development sector. This feasibility work developed PFS value propositions for promoting financial self-sufficiency and analyzed projected impact, necessary fundraising, and the economics of various projects for stakeholders. — This project closed in 2016.
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| Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services | County | Austin/Travis County, TX | Closed | |
Description:
Third Sector Capital Partners worked with Austin/Travis County, TX, with leadership from the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department, to focus on determining the feasibility of PFS for reducing teen pregnancies among Hispanic youth and improving birth outcomes among African Americans. The geography served was the City of Austin and Travis County, TX. Measurable outcomes we anticipated on achieving with this engagement included clearly defined target population(s) and analysis of available administrative data. In addition, the engagement conducted an intervention assessment and preliminary evaluability assessment to determine which issue area would have the best viability for PFS. The intervention assessment focused on the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) teen pregnancy prevention program Maternal Infant Outreach Program (MIOP). — This project closed in 2016.
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| City/County of San Francisco | County | San Francisco County, CA | Closed | |
Description:
With support from the James Irvine Foundation and Nonprofit Finance Fund’s California Pay for Success Initiative, Third Sector partnered with the City and County of San Francisco Office of Civic Innovation to explore the possibility of PFS projects in three impact areas: maternal and infant health, at-risk transitional-aged youth and homeless families. — This project closed in 2015.
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| First Five Los Angeles | County | Los Angeles County, CA | Closed | |
Description:
Two of California’s largest First 5 Commissions – First 5 LA and the Children and Families Commission of Orange County – jointly explored the feasibility of using PFS contracting to support their maternal and child health home visitation programs, Welcome Baby and the Bridges Maternal Child Health Network. Third Sector conducted feasibility studies with the two Commissions with support from the James Irvine Foundation and Nonprofit Finance Fund’s California Pay for Success Initiative. — This project closed in 2015.
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Get in touch
Kesha Lee
Managing Director, Early Childhood
Washington, DC | klee@thirdsectorcap.org