June 30, 2025 – With funding support from the Bryan Foundation, Ready for School, Ready for Life (Ready Ready) and Guilford County Schools (GCS) have launched a major initiative to help ensure more children enter school ready to thrive. The two organizations are partnering to implement the Early Development Instrument (EDI), a research-based tool that provides a population-level snapshot of how young children are developing in key areas such as social competence, emotional maturity, language, and physical health.
“This is a game-changer for our county,” said Teshanda Middleton, CEO of Ready Ready. “For the first time, we can measure the school readiness of all children—and that insight gives us the power to act. Thanks to our strong partnership with GCS, we will now have a baseline to drive smarter investments and targeted support where it’s needed most. The data from these questionnaires will guide our community to ensure many more children enter school ready to learn. School readiness isn’t just an education milestone—it’s a critical predictor of lifelong success and upward economic mobility.”
In April, Guilford County kindergarten teachers completed EDI questionnaires, offering observations across five developmental domains. The data will be analyzed by the Center for Healthier Children, Families, and Communities at UCLA and reported back to the community this fall in both table and map form. These localized insights will help identify trends and opportunities at the neighborhood level, driving informed investments and interventions.
The EDI complements Ready Ready’s broader effort to build a connected, data-informed early childhood system in Guilford County. The findings will be used not just by schools, but by community leaders, service providers, and funders working across the prenatal-to-age-eight continuum.
The EDI process will be repeated every 2–3 years to track progress, inform planning, and strengthen collective impact strategies across the county.
“Knowing what our children need before they come to school is critical to our strategic plan goals to accelerate learning and prepare students for the world,” says Jusmar Maness, chief academic officer for Guilford County Schools. “Using this data will allow us to work with our community partners to provide targeted support and give children the building blocks of learning more efficiently.”
As results are released this fall, Ready Ready and GCS plan to engage community partners in conversations around what the data reveals and how it can be used to improve outcomes for children and families across Guilford County.
About Ready Ready
Ready for School, Ready for Life is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization working to create a connected, innovative system of care for Guilford County’s youngest children and their families. This collective impact approach aligns key community efforts from prenatal through age five to ensure all children start kindergarten ready to learn. Learn more at www.GetReadyGuilford.org.
About Guilford County Schools
Guilford County Schools, the third largest school district in North Carolina and among the largest of more than 14,000 in the United States, serves nearly 67,000 PK-12 students at 120 schools. With approximately 9,800 employees, GCS works in partnership with parents, businesses, colleges and the community to deliver an education that connects student interests and skills with the careers and economy of our future here and around the world. We provide educational choices to meet individual student needs in a culturally diverse citizenship and new opportunities to help our students grow. For more information, visit the district’s website at www.gcsnc.com.