partnership. parallel investments. persistence. 

Children are born learning. Numerous scientific studies and economic analyses document the value of investing in the first five years to ensure that more infants, toddlers and preschoolers in disadvantaged families grow up eager to learn and ready for school.

The Buffett Early Childhood Fund amplifies the impact of its investments through partnerships with other funders, government agencies, and local organization, supporting complimentary and parallel programs, and through persistent, long-term investments in key programs. 

Established in 2005, the Buffett Early Childhood Fund is committed to establishing a more level playing field for all children as they enter kindergarten — a goal that should be a given in any society that values equal opportunity.

National Investments

Nationally, we often invest with other like-minded funders and typically through private-public partnerships. Together, we seek to redefine "education" to encompass the first five years of life and learning through an integrated strategy to invest in:

• Practice, through Educare Schools in the nationwide Educare Learning Network
• Policy, through the Alliance for Early Success and the First Five Years Fund
• Science, through the Harvard Center on the Developing Child, Nobel Laureate in Economics James Heckman, and the FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina.

Our national co-investors include: George Kaiser Family Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Irving Harris Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, JB and MK Pritzker Children’s Initiative, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Heising-Simons Foundation, an Anonymous foundation, and others. More partners are always welcome.

Nebraska Investments

In Nebraska, we are working with a wide variety of partners to make our state the best place in America to raise a baby – a vision articulated by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska. We co-invest in a variety of organizations working in the areas of early childhood practice, policy, and science. 

More information about our Nebraska investments can be found here. 

To view a message from Susan A. Buffett: A Promise to Keep
Susan A. Buffett also supports efforts to improve child and family welfare in Omaha through The Sherwood Foundation.