Guest blog by Carrie Germeroth, Ph.D. Managing Senior Researcher at Marzano Research

From Seed to System

What happens when you give local early childhood leaders the freedom to try bold ideas with modest seed funding?

In Colorado, the answer is visible in classrooms, child care centers, and community organizations that are still thriving two years after their original CIRCLE Grant dollars ran out. Nearly half of CIRCLE-funded projects are still operating, serving more than 53,000 additional children, families, and educators since the grants ended. What began as flexible, small grants produced durable shifts in practice, policy, and system capacity.

This matters because short-term dollars, when paired with trust and technical support, can grow into permanent solutions for some of early childhood education’s biggest challenges.

A Different Kind of Grantmaking

The CIRCLE Grant, funded by the Colorado Department of Early Childhood and administered by Early Milestones Colorado, launched in 2022 as a rapid response to pandemic-era disruptions. Grantees included licensed centers, community-based nonprofits, early childhood councils, and school districts across all 64 counties. They were charged with tackling pressing challenges: workforce shortages, limited family access, and learning opportunity gaps.

Unlike traditional funding streams, CIRCLE gave recipients flexibility to design homegrown solutions. That flexibility became the foundation for staying power.

What Sustainers Look Like

The two-year follow-up study paints a clear profile of organizations that turned temporary seed dollars into lasting change. Notable insights include:

• Right-Sized Awards Show Staying Power.  Projects funded at $26k–$50k or $101k–$150k were most likely to remain active.
• Community-rooted providers drove sustainability. Licensed centers (40%) and nonprofits (36%) make up the bulk of sustainers, many located in Metro Denver and rural hubs like Garfield and Mesa counties.
• Workforce development and access projects held the strongest foothold. Nearly three-quarters of sustainers still advance Colorado’s Workforce Development & Retention (73%) and Expanding Access Goals (62).
• Flexible staffing models matter. Sustainers used more part-time or hourly staff, giving the organizations breathing room to adapt to enrollment swings.
• Growth was common. One project scaled from serving 21 counties to statewide reach. Others added new counties and populations. Collectively, sustainers expanded their footprint by tens of thousands of participants.

Profile of a CIRCLE Sustainer

Caring Kids Preschool in Garfield County offers one example of sustainability in action. With a $76k award, the center built a “grow-your-own” staffing model by partnering with high schools and colleges, embedding apprenticeships into its daily operations. After the end of the grant, the program retained those pipelines and expanded into four additional counties.

Sustainers of this kind extend their reach, replicate successful practices, and shape the broader early childhood system.

“We’ve shifted to a “grow-your-own” staffing model, recognizing that the most effective way to build a sustainable workforce is by supporting entry-level employees from the ground up. This means providing intentional mentorship, on-the-job coaching, and hands-on training . . . Partnerships with local high schools, community colleges, and universities, especially those with early childhood education programs, . . . help us create a pipeline of future educators, offer practicum opportunities, and allow us to engage students early in their career journey.”
–Caring Kids Preschool, LLC, Colorado

How Sustainability Happens

The study identified four core tactics used by sustainers to keep their work alive after funding ended.

Most organizations used one strategy, usually embedding. Those that layered two or more created greater resilience. Embedding set the foundation, while funding and partnerships provided growth.

Ripples That Reach Farther

The most compelling evidence of CIRCLE’s impact comes from its ripple effects.

• 85% of projects reported individual-level gains, such as reduced staff stress, new credentials, or stronger parent confidence.
• 75% observed organizational changes, including more intentional staff collaboration and embedded professional development.
• 65% saw community-level outcomes, like cross-county substitute pools and parent-led playground builds.
• 48% recorded system-level shifts, from new stipend policies to statewide apprenticeship registries.

These ripples show how short-term, flexible funding can influence structural reforms.

An Access and Innovation Focus

A focus on access for all powered nearly every success. For example, grantees embedded bilingual materials, interpreter stipends, and family liaisons into budgets.

Innovation showed up in infrastructure and finance. Vacant lots became outdoor classrooms. CIRCLE funding helped a provider grow a sustainable substitute network powered by an existing app, turning a local idea into a regional workforce solution with statewide scale potential. Tax-credit coaching unlocked up to six-figure refunds for small centers – funds they used to stabilize wages and launch new credential cohorts.

Lessons for Policymakers and Leaders

Another exciting ripple of the impact of CIRCLE has been around policy. Local pilots are now informing state systems because providers have credibility and data in hand. Several grantees have testified before the state legislature or sit on task forces, using their CIRCLE experience and data as evidence to help shape statewide policy on compensation, health consultation, and language access.

On the grant design itself, the takeaway is clear for funding leaders and policymakers: modest, flexible, time-limited awards generate impressive system-wide returns. The CIRCLE story shows that this type of funding is most effective when they are:

• Coupled with technical assistance. Grantees asked for grant-writing labs, peer networks, and introductions to local funders. Nine out of ten reported feeling more prepared to pursue new funding after their CIRCLE experience.
• Designed to encourage embedding. Sustainability comes when practices are woven into daily operations, not when organizations only chase the next check.
• Structured to support relationships. Partnerships across sectors multiplied impacts, from shared staffing pipelines to policy coalitions.

Future investments should build on these lessons.

The Bigger Picture

Two years after the last funds were spent, the CIRCLE Grant continues to generate returns. Nearly half of projects remain active, thousands more children and families have access to stronger services, and system-level reforms are spreading.

This evidence makes a strong case for policymakers and funders: when local leaders are trusted with flexible seed money and support, they create lasting structures that benefit the entire early childhood system.

Learn more about these findings at marzanoresearch.com/circle.