We live in a fast-moving world driven by knowledge, innovation and creativity. Our nation’s schools are adapting to these changes—but much remains to be done. We need a culture change in public education to transform the way we teach, lead and learn.
Education First can help. We are a mission-driven strategy and policy organization with unique and deep expertise in education improvement. We partner with practitioners, policymakers, funders and advocates to design and accelerate policies and plans that help all young people— particularly students in poverty and students of color—succeed in college, careers and life.
Our Latest Thinking
From Our Blog
Supporting the Social, Emotional and Academic Learning Needs of LGBTQI students
The Social Emotional Learning Innovation Fund offers up to $5,000 grant awards for teachers seeking to foster students’ social and emotional skills in fresh, inventive or innovative ways. In 2018, for the first time, the fund asked for proposals from educators working to support the social emotional needs of LGBTQI students. In honor of National Coming Out Day, we met...
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Meet Our People
Kevin has dedicated his professional career to ensuring that each child has greater opportunities and success. Before joining Education First, Kevin served as a senior policy analyst for the Ohio Department of Education. In that role, he worked with Ohio’s governor, legislature and State Board of Education to craft and implement major policies. During his time at the Ohio Department...
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Helpful Resources
Reimagining the Classroom to Support Students
This is the second in a series of posts written by teacher awardees of the NoVo Social Emotional Learning Innovation Fund. You can read the...
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State Teacher Leadership Toolkit
State education agencies have a unique opportunity through the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to access the funding and support needed to advance their approach...
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Social & Emotional Learning: Looking Back, Aiming Forward
Social emotional learning (SEL) holds great potential for improving learning and college and career-ready outcomes for all students. But there is much work to do...
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A New Resource for Advocates for High-Quality Assessments
By design, the Common Core standards and other college- and career-ready expectations states have established recently were designed to have a ripple effect throughout the...
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