National Early Childhood Inclusion Indicators Initiative

About the Initiative

The goal of the initiative is to improve and increase inclusive opportunities for young children with disabilities and their families, through system and practice refinements. To that end, we developed indicators that address inclusive policies and practices at the state, community, local program leadership and early care and education environments levels.

The initiative is co-led by the Early Childhood Technical Assistance (ECTA) Center and the National Center for Pyramid Model Innovations (NCPMI) and includes partners from across the early care and education system. ECTA Center led the development of the state, community, and local program leadership indicators and the NCPMI led the development of the early care and education environments indicators.

Additionally, a cross-sector partner group of early childhood leaders was formed with representation from national TA centers funded by the Offices of Child Care, Head Start, Special Education Programs, and Elementary and Secondary Education, national early childhood professional associations, national organizations, family organizations, racial equity, and dual-language learner (DLL) experts at the Children's Equity Project and state agencies. This cross-sector approach brought together different perspectives of the early care and education system in the development and dissemination of the work. The partners participated by providing input and guidance in the development and refinement of the indicators. Additionally, states, communities, local programs and providers piloted and provided extensive feedback on the indicators to inform what exists now.

Partners