Early Childhood Research Alliance of Chicago

07/28/2025

Are you a Chicago Public Schools (CPS) pre-K teacher or administrator in the Austin, Little Village, or West Ridge Communities?

We are inviting CPS pre-K teachers and administrators from these communities to participate in a focus group to help our team understand how the pre-K system is operating for you and your community. You will help us identify roadblocks and assist in the creation of potential solutions to improve access to pre-K programming in your community, and throughout the city of Chicago.

The CPS pre-K teacher/administrator focus group will be held virtually, via Zoom, on Tuesday August 5th. If you are interested, please complete the survey screener: https://northwestern.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_77gRaOqEtWGNwAS

07/18/2025

‼️Do you live or work in the Little Village community area? ‼️

We are inviting parents of preschoolers (3-5 year olds) and early childhood staff who serve 3-5 year olds (teachers, staff, directors) to join a Preschool Community Council. This Preschool Community Council will help us take a closer, hyperlocal look at how the preschool system is working in your area. Council members will be asked to attend three meetings over the summer—one in person and two virtual. If selected and you attend all three sessions, you’ll receive a gift card as a thank you for your time and insights. If you're passionate about early childhood and want to make a difference in your community, we’d love to hear from you!

There is still time to join the Community Council before our first meeting on July 23rd!! Fill out our community screener survey to get involved: https://northwestern.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6zicf3JUdrCuggm

07/14/2025

!!ATTENTION AUSTIN COMMUNITY AREA!!

Do you live or work in the Austin Community Area?

We are inviting parents of preschoolers (3-5 year olds) and early childhood staff who serve 3-5 year olds (teachers, staff, directors) to join a Preschool Community Council. This Preschool Community Council will help us take a closer, hyperlocal look at how the preschool system is working in your area. Council members will be asked to attend three meetings over the summer—one in person and two virtual. If selected and you attend all three sessions, you’ll receive a gift card as a thank you for your time and insights. If you're passionate about early childhood and want to make a difference in your community, we’d love to hear from you!
Please complete the Community Screener Survey to get involved: https://northwestern.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cPcVBYwkRQ2vBBk

07/02/2025

Do you live or work in the West Ridge/West Rogers Park community area?

We are inviting parents of preschoolers (3-5 year olds) and early childhood staff who serve 3-5 year olds (teachers, staff, directors) to join a Preschool Community Council. This Preschool Community Council will help us take a closer, hyperlocal look at how the preschool system is working in your area. Council members will be asked to attend three meetings over the summer—one in person and two virtual. If selected and you attend all three sessions, you’ll receive a gift card as a thank you for your time and insights. If you're passionate about early childhood and want to make a difference in your community, we’d love to hear from you!

Please complete the Community Screener Survey to get involved: https://northwestern.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9vmZr7TR6tzsUwS

05/30/2025

Over the past 15 years, Chicago has had a substantial decline in the population of children birth to five. While some Chicago community areas have experienced significant growth of children birth to five, most other communities have faced sharp declines. Recognizing and understanding the demographic patterns of young children provides important context for the planning of early childhood services and allocating educational resources across Chicago’s diverse communities. This research memo examines the geographic variation in population changes across the city and changes in the characteristics of Chicago families with children birth to five.

Read the full memo here: https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/new-ec-reach-publication-the-shifting-demographics-of-chicagos-young-children

05/09/2025

Head Start touches nearly every corner of Chicago—supporting nearly 14,000 children, empowering working families, and fueling nearly 1 in 4 child care seats across the city. It’s not just a program—it’s a vital part of our city’s early childhood ecosystem.

Read the full Data Brief here: https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/new-ec-reach-publication-head-start-is-vital-to-chicagos-children-families-and-communities

12/09/2024

**NEW PUBLICATION ALERT**

EC*REACH analyzed trends in Chicago Public Schools (CPS) enrollment over the past decade and found that post-pandemic, enrollment in the early grades is rising.

Read the full brief here: https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/new-ec-reach-publication-uptick-in-chicago-public-schools-enrollment-driven-by-early-grades

09/18/2024

Join us for the next Citywide Early Childhood Research Roundtables virtual event, next Wednesday, September 25th from 12:00-1:00pm. Mickie Brown and Kyrsten Emanuel of Start Early and Carrie Comer-Yates from Chicago Public Schools will present findings from a pilot program to implement, assess, and institutionalize feasible strategies and approaches for delivering special education services on-site in Head Start programs.

Click to sign up to receive calendar invitations or to share your work at this virtual event series: https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/citywide-early-childhood-research-roundtable-4

07/18/2024

EC*REACH’s next Citywide Early Childhood Research Roundtable meeting is coming up on Wednesday, July 24th, 12:00-1:00 p.m.. This month, Dr. Julia Henly, Professor and Deputy Dean for Faculty Development and Research in the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, will present her work on nontraditional hour childcare in progress as part of a federally funded research partnership between the Erikson Institute, The University of Chicago, Illinois Action for Children, and the Illinois Department of Human Services.

Click to sign up to receive calendar invitations or to share your work at this virtual event series: https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/citywide-early-childhood-research-roundtable-2

07/17/2024

Thank you to the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University for highlighting last month's Chicago Early Childhood Research Conference!

Nearly 250 attendees gathered on June 10 for Chicago's first early childhood research conference in seven years, hosted by the Early Childhood Research Alliance of Chicago. Read about the conference and how EC*REACH is providing research-powered answers to community-driven questions: http://spr.ly/6182i9OiC

06/20/2024

We are so energized following last week’s EC*REACH Chicago Early Childhood Research Conference! Nearly 250 members of Chicago's early childhood community came together to learn and connect. Missed a session? Check out the conference materials archive on our website! https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/ec-reachs-early-childhood-research-conference

06/07/2024

We can’t wait for Monday’s Chicago Early Childhood Research Conference – Chicago’s first early childhood research conference in over seven years!

Check out the featured speakers, full lineup of breakout sessions, and wide array of poster presentations: https://www.ecreach.org/news-and-events/ec-reachs-early-childhood-research-conference