NEIECC Coordinator Allie Sutherland
Allie graduated with a BA in Mathematics from Denison University after which she discovered her true passion was Early Childhood. Allie holds a Master of Science in Child Development from San Diego State University as well as a certificate in Early Childhood Social and Emotional Behavioral Intervention and is endorsed as an Infant Mental Health Mentor by the Alliance of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health. Allie has over 17 years experience in Early Childhood working as a preschool teacher, child development specialist, program manager at First Five First Steps a home visiting program, and community engagement specialist. In addition to developing the Northeast Indiana Early Childhood Coalition, she is leading a project on Healthy Developmental Services at Bridge of Grace in Fort Wayne.
Contact her at asutherland@bridgeofgracecmc.org or 619-851-8303
History of NEIECC
December 2021: Ambassador Enterprises gathered local leaders to discuss promising practices and gauge interest in building a community of practice.
January 2022: The group decided that we could do more together with a coordinated effort. Gensyn Design began working with the group to define priorities and develop a process to move groups from conversations to actions.
May 2022: After 5 months of design work, the group defined priorities of advocacy, messaging, employer and workforce supports, as well as building strong county coalitions. A structure and governance was defined and a coordinator was hired.
June 2022: The First Strategic Doing Workshop was launched with over 40 participants in NEI. Projects around employer relationships, legislative advocacy, and support of the early childhood workforce were developed.
December 2022: Completed a legislative ask and economic impact study of a Tri-Share Model, surveying over 1,400 employees on child care needs and connecting with 80 directors in the region to measure the "real life" of a director
February 2023: Launched round 2 of Strategic Doing focusing on projects around employers connecting to childcare, an organized grassroots effort to support legislation, organizing childcare providers to understand and advocate for sustainable care, and sharing the message of the Regional Coalition
August 2023: Launched "TPMA" 2.0, a second study that takes a closer look at the state of child care and early learning in Northeast Indiana by surveys, focus groups, and individual interviews with employers, parents, providers, economic development experts, community members, and more.