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Follow @reggiebicha Ascend Fellow and Colorado Department of Human Services Executive Director Reggie Bicha, center, speaking at the Aspen ThinkXChange in October, 2012. Two-generation strategies are being implemented across the state of Colorado, and a new project is in the works which illustrates the impact that can be made statewide and in local communities. …
Colorado Children Learn the Importance of Saving for the Future Read More »

Leslie Campbell is second from right, above, at the Aspen ThinkXChange In 1998, Leslie Campbell went to prison for two years after an abusive relationship with a person who was addicted to drugs. Prison separated her from her two-year-old daughter, but after release she decided to reclaim her lost hopes and dreams. Leslie is …
Post-Prison, a Story of Educating Two Generations At A Time Read More »

Follow @YasminaNHSA Caption: Young alumni from GLEAMNS Human Resources Commission, Inc.’s Head Start program in South Carolina stand up for kids! Click here for more photos. One of Head Start’s foundational beliefs is that parents are their children’s first teachers, and last week Head Start and Early Head Start parents across the country …

Follow @heynisha Photo courtesy of sarasotagov.com I’m writing this as I fly back to Washington, DC, from Sarasota, Florida – where the Community Foundation of Sarasota County (CFSC) is exploring how to apply the two-generation approach that Ascend at the Aspen Institute has put forward. Sarasota is a beautiful place – gorgeous beaches, the …

National data have consistently shown a relationship between maternal education level and how well children are prepared for success as they enter kindergarten (see figure above). As the country continues to struggle with what seems like an intractable achievement gap, it is time to put more attention on expanding the two ends of the education …
Early Childhood and Maternal Education: Time to Bring Two Generations Together Read More »

Sowmya Ramanathan is a 2011 graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and served as an intern at Ascend in the fall of 2012. As Ascend looks at how two-generation programs – which provide opportunities for and meet the needs of vulnerable parents and their children together – can help ensure economic security, we …