At Summit Education Initiative, everything we do is rooted in a simple but powerful belief: where you grow up should not determine how far you go. Since 1996, we have worked alongside educators, families, community leaders, and partners across Summit County to build a more equitable path forward for every student.
To strengthen both individual lives and our regional economy by ensuring every person has access to quality education that unlocks opportunity and drives lasting prosperity.
We envision a future where every Summit County student graduates equipped with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to thrive and further their education.
Community leaders formed Summit Education Initiative in 1996 to significantly improve educational opportunities and outcomes for all Summit County children. Their plan was to engage and mobilize a broad base of partners and stakeholders in the work, and to seek innovative solutions to persistent educational challenges that face students, families, schools, and our community. Our strategies and tactics have evolved over the years, but we continue to focus on what matters most: forming partnerships to develop innovative approaches that support every student in Summit County, from cradle to career.
We envision a future in which all Summit County, Ohio students are prepared for success on a chosen path. As a backbone organization, we help coordinate cradle-to-career collective impact efforts in Summit County by bringing together schools, early learning centers, out-of-school-time providers, higher education institutions, businesses, government agencies, families and community organizations to close equity gaps and improve educational outcomes.
Our work aims to improve systems and create better opportunities for everyone. The collective impact model focuses on increasing equity by removing barriers that cause unequal outcomes, especially for marginalized students and students facing economic disadvantage.
We serve as a strategic connector and learning partner, aligning efforts, providing actionable data and supporting measurable change that fuels success from birth through career. Our Peer Learning Networks (PLNs) bring together high-impact partners: organizations with the reach, readiness and resources to drive meaningful change. These networks unite leaders across sectors around key transition points in the cradle-to-career journey.