At the Bainum Family Foundation, we support partners in the development, understanding and application of best practices in education and child development through research, training and advocacy. We believe understanding new trends and emerging best practices is critical to improving support for vulnerable children and families.

This interactive report issued recently by Urban Institute (“A Vision for an Equitable DC”) presents District-specific data on education, housing, health, employment and poverty to determine the implications — and realities — of the city’s racial inequities. Partnering with organizations and agencies in the District of Columbia and utilizing data such as that found in this report, the Foundation has been able to accurately assess our community’s needs and fully understand impact, promote equity and inclusion, and become more effective in the opportunities and services we support. For example, the Foundation partnered with Urban Institute to conduct neighborhood-level data analysis regarding integrated educational and wrap-around supports for children in Wards 7 and 8.

The Foundation also partnered with Child Trends to produce the “Infants and Toddlers in the District of Columbia: A Statistical Look at Needs and Disparities” — which provided a baseline for what was needed for infants and toddlers in the most vulnerable communities in the District. These findings were instrumental in not only shaping our 2015-2020 Strategic Plan, but continuing to guide us as we move closer to achieving our 2020 goals.