This is the first in a series of fact sheets about public-private child care partnerships. The information in this series has been collected as part of the Child Care Partnership Project, a joint initiative of The Finance Project, National Governors' Association, and Families and Work Institute, supported by the Child Care Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This fact sheet defines and describes the characteristics of successful public-private child care partnerships. Additional fact sheets in this series provide information about a variety of partnerships and include tips for success, along with selected partnership examples. Although each partnership is unique, they typically share some common characteristics.
Partners work together toward shared goals or objectives.
Decision-making and management responsibilities are shared among the partners. Principles for Success Successful partnerships follow similar principles that guide and support their activities. These principles are relevant to a variety of initiatives. Have clear goals. Partnerships should define goals at the outset in order to ensure clarity among partners, achieve desired results, and help guide the partnership through obstacles and challenges.