Collaboration is the key to high-quality child care and to effective partnerships for educators and families. Bringing together public schools with Head Start, child care providers, and other early childhood partners, the majority of these partnerships report signs of improved outcomes for children in school readiness and performance. Furthermore, the report indicates that partnerships between community-based programs and the public schools help to improve access to quality child care and facilitate transitions between preschool and the early grades. The report recommends that in order for quality early childhood education to lead to future school success, public schools must take leadership roles in these partnerships and invest their resources, authority and political clout to improving child care. The partnerships also rely on the public schools to form strong relationships with their community-based partners, who bring expertise about early childhood development, curriculum, comprehensive services and parent involvement.
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