What the Pandemic has Taught us about Changing Systems
Another year of the pandemic has come and gone, bringing change to everything it’s touched. At Milwaukee Succeeds, navigating this uncertain landscape has certainly presented challenges, but it’s also given us an opportunity to re-examine how we operate and discover new ways to work together to improve outcomes for our kids.
One thing that has become exceedingly clear is the need to shift power to those with lived experiences. In order to achieve any meaningful results in the early childhood and high school sectors, it is imperative that we incorporate the perspectives of individuals who are navigating those systems. Yet it’s not enough for us to merely ask for their input or seek their approval; they must be true partners in the work, helping us define strategies, allocate resources and make decisions across all levels. Only by incorporating them fully will we be able to transform these systems, bringing about long-term, sustainable change.
As you’ll see in our Annual Report, Milwaukee Succeeds has been busy developing new strategies to ignite this change. On the early childhood side, our powerful ECE Coalition has utilized a unified voice to advocate for increased resources, which has resulted in millions of dollars flowing into Milwaukee’s ECE sector. On the high school success front, our Design Your Future Fellowship brought youth in on the ground floor of our work, allowing them to shape our priorities and design the direction of our work for years to come.
In order to support our new direction, we’ve also redesigned our leadership structure, incorporating lived experience partners and reaffirming our commitment to racial justice, shifting power and changing systems.
Thank you for joining us on this incredible journey of learning and growth. I know that together we can affect real change, especially for those who need it most: our Black and Brown children and Black male youth. I look forward to the meaningful change we will be a part of together in the next few years.
