A Community Effort

Emerging Strategies to Improve Early Childhood Outcomes in Elkhart County

More than 50 percent of Elkhart County’s children arrive at kindergarten without the necessary tools for success. This initiative is focused on building a comprehensive, systems-based approach to helping children succeed.

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Our Organizational Sponsors

With effort and collaboration, we can build a system supporting children under age 6 and the families who raise them so that every child is prepared when they enter elementary school.

A group of organizational sponsors has come together to work collaboratively:

Building Strong Brains Organizational Sponsors

Latest News

Welcoming the Building Strong Brains Assistant Director

Brian Replogle joined the Building Strong Brains Coalition in August as its assistant director. A retired firefighter and EMT-A from South Bend, Brian is a dedicated father to his son, Austin, and has been a passionate advocate for families and children—both with and...

Encouraging Infant Interaction, Language, and Literacy Development

Thank you to SmartNoggin for donating over 100 Baby’s First Book of Sounds to Elkhart County partners for distribution to families. Marcia Haut, SmartNoggin Founder, lived and worked in Elkhart County for years and we are thankful for this donation to support young...

Onboarding Network Analysis through Visible Network Labs

We are continually learning and evolving as we build a strong, sustainable Building Strong Brains coalition. A key part of this complex effort is measuring our shared impact and planning strategic next steps. With the help of Visible Network Labs, we’ll gain deeper...

Welcoming Goshen College as the 11th Building Strong Brains Organizational Sponsor

We are excited to welcome Goshen College as our newest organizational sponsor. Our organizational sponsors help BSB by: Prioritizing early child development as a focus for the organization, evidenced by board agreement. Agreeing to share, to the extent possible,...

Growing Connections and Shifting Mindsets

August Family Child Care Networking Event Thank you to Geminus for visiting family child care providers in Elkhart County to invite them to the Family Child Care Networking event held last month. Each provider received a bag filled with information, resources, and...

Connecting with and Supporting Parents and Families

Launching Beyond the Blues Beyond the Blues is a group for pregnant and postpartum women with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) that will be launching at Oaklawn’s Goshen location in September.  The group came about through collaboration between members of...

Overcoming Challenges

Over the coming decade or more, community partners will help parents overcome challenges as they raise their children.

In September 2021, those leading the initiative started meeting with Tamarack Institute, which leads systems-level work in Canada to fight poverty. The tools and processes from that work can be applied to this area in Elkhart County. Children need security, enrichment and time, and families need the ability to provide these for their children. Over the coming decade or more, Elkhart County will create systems that help all children who enter kindergarten be prepared for success.

Since May 2022, more than 50 parents have come to listening sessions to help leaders better understand the challenges they face in raising children. Three focus groups have been working to study Elkhart County’s approach to Maternal & Child Health, Support for Young Families, and High-Quality Childcare & Learning Environments.

To learn more about these action teams, download this PDF.

Our Mission

With effort and collaboration, we can build a system supporting children under age 6 and the families who raise them so that every child is prepared when they enter elementary school.

The “Theory of Change”

The “theory of change” that undergirds this work is that if children and mothers have  positive health outcomes, if children have  access to safe and stimulating environments, and if families have the resources they need to support children’s positive development then the community’s children will enter kindergarten poised for success. The effort is being called “Building Strong Brains: Elkhart County’s Early Childhood Initiative.”

Research tells us:

A

Brains are built rapidly in the earliest stages of life.

B

This construction process is shaped by resources available to kids, families, and communities.

C

Early brain architecture sets a lasting foundation for children’s physical health and overall wellbeing.

D

Back-and-forth, “serve-and-return” interactions and responsive relationships build young brains and bodies.

E

When our policies channel severe stress into the lives of adults, “serve-and-return” interactions can break down.

We invite you to join us in this work

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Career Opportunities

Currently, there are no open positions available. Please check back soon for updates.