First 5 Leadership Institute

Advancing California’s Early Childhood Leaders

Register for Upcoming Sessions

What We Know About Early Child Development. And Why it Matters.

This workshop will equip participants with foundational knowledge about multiple domains including cognitive, language, motor and social/emotional development within young children birth through age five years old.

Medi-Cal Learning Community Quarterly Roundtable Discussions

Making CalAIM Work for Community Providers: Lessons and Strategies from California’s First 5 Network

This webinar highlights First 5s’ journey to contracting with MCPs for new benefits – lifting up the successes and challenges First 5s have encountered.

Nurturing Early Childhood Leaders Through a Connected Ecosystem

At the heart of our commitment to strengthening early childhood systems is the belief that leadership is a journey shaped by community, continuous learning, and shared purpose.

Our Leadership Development Ecosystem grows with you, offering multiple pathways, like Affinity Circles or Leadership Lab, for engagement and development over time.

This approach ensures that leaders at every stage, emerging, evolving, or established, have access to the support they need.

Each component of the ecosystem is intentionally designed to build on the others, creating a cohesive and dynamic structure.

What people are saying about the
Leadership Institute

"For advocacy, I used the guidance to create a Commission agenda item to endorse a ballot measure and to inform what actions I can take after that endorsement that is legal."

Advocacy TrackAdvocacy and the Law session attendee

"Plan to utilize some of Elliot Haspel talking points on the importance of child care when engaging with elected officials/business sector to advocate for financially supporting quality child care for families."

Field in Focus TrackReimagining America’s Approach to Children & Families with Elliot Haspel session attendee

"Really great information, especially for those navigating the turbulent times and for a newbie to public policy."

Advocacy TrackAdvocacy and the Law session attendee

"This was excellent! So grateful you brought Elliot to speak. Gave me a lot to consider, and gave me hope from an advocacy standpoint"

Field in Focus TrackReimagining America’s Approach to Children & Families with Elliot Haspel session attendee

Leadership Institute Offerings

Spaces to connect and lead authentically.

Affinity Circles

Identity-centered groups that offer space for connection, reflection, and empowerment, helping leaders bring their full selves to their work.

Mentorship, support, and guidance through connection.

Leadership Lab

Pairing experienced leaders with emerging ones to foster one-on-one learning, reflection, and professional growth rooted in relationship-building.

Learn at your pace, deepen your impact

Virtual Learning Tracks

Focused, self-guided or facilitated sessions designed to build core competencies and explore emerging topics in early childhood leadership.

Additional Offerings Launching Soon

Launching 2027

Fellowship Program

Lead with purpose and shape the future.
A capstone opportunity for early childhood leaders to apply their learning in a real-world project while contributing to system-wide change.

Leadership Institute Session Calendar

Skill-building and reflection

Building and Strengthening our Anti-Racist Capacity

Presented by Dr. Lori A. Watson with Race-Work

As conversations around diversity, equity, and inclusion (D.E.I.) face increasing scrutiny, the need for open and honest dialogue about race remains deeply important.

While many organizations are actively working to address racism, these efforts sometimes focus on surface-level policies rather than examining the deeper systemic issues woven into our histories, cultures, and everyday practices.

Meaningful progress calls for ongoing learning, reflection, and intentional action. This work invites us to look closely at how our interactions and organizational habits may unintentionally perpetuate inequities, even when these conversations feel challenging. By deepening our knowledge, strengthening our skills, and building collective resolve, we can move toward more effective anti-racist practices and create environments where everyone has genuine opportunities to thrive.

Stay tuned for more upcoming events!

Regional Commissioner Roundtables

Virtual roundtable designed specifically for current First 5 county commissioners. Offers a dedicated space for commissioners across California to connect, share experiences, and learn from one another through structured breakout conversations organized by county population size and region.

First 5 Staff Onboarding: Understanding the Network, Mission, and Our Collective Impact

Join us for an engaging onboarding session designed to welcome new First 5 staff into the statewide network. This session will introduce the history and structure of First 5, explore the powerful case for investing in early childhood, and provide an overview of key staff roles across counties. We’ll highlight how First 5 teams work together—within and across counties—to advance equity and improve outcomes for California’s youngest children and their families. Whether you’re new to the organization or looking to deepen your understanding of the network, this session offers a valuable foundation for your work ahead.

Medi-Cal Learning Community Quarterly Roundtable Discussions

These roundtables bring together county First 5 commissions to share experiences, discuss challenges, and learn from one another as they navigate partnerships with Medi-Cal managed care plans.

Making CalAIM Work for Community Providers: Lessons and Strategies from California’s First 5 Network

California’s Medi-Cal program is undergoing a significant transformation focused on expanding care navigation and engaging trusted community providers to deliver more equitable care.

Through this transformation, new Medi-Cal benefits, such as community health worker (CHW) services and enhanced care management (ECM), closely align with early childhood services delivered and funded by the First 5 network, including home visiting, parent education, and care coordination. California’s Medi-Cal transformation is a critical opportunity to expand the landscape of services for the state’s children and their parents/caregivers. First 5s across the state have met the moment, with eight contracted with Medi-Cal managed care plans (MCPs) to deliver Medi-Cal services and many more currently in the process.

This webinar highlights First 5s’ journey to contracting with MCPs for new benefits. Additionally, we will lift up the successes and challenges First 5s have encountered and offer policy solutions to support Medi-Cal’s vision of a community-provider integrated network of care that meets families with young children where they are and delivers timely, high-quality care.

Medi-Cal Learning Community Quarterly Roundtable Discussions

These roundtables bring together county First 5 commissions to share experiences, discuss challenges, and learn from one another as they navigate partnerships with Medi-Cal managed care plans.

What We Know About Early Child Development. And Why it Matters.

Presented by: Andria Goss, MS, MSW & Jill Barbre, MsEd, LCSW

Participants will learn about child development through the lens of theory and practice. This workshop will equip participants with foundational knowledge about multiple domains including cognitive, language, motor and social/emotional development within young children birth through age five years old.

Participants will:

– Gain a better understanding of child development through the birth through five years

– Acquire practical strategies to support development

– Learn how the child’s environment can impact development

Leadership Development and Learning Is Part of Our Focus and Our Future

Part of First 5 Association’s Strategic Framework goals is developing and implementing comprehensive leadership development programs and learning opportunities for members of the First 5 Network, the early childhood field, and other sector leaders.

Our goal is to have more leaders in California who prioritize the health and well-being of young children and their families—and have the knowledge, tools, and experiences to create sustained change.

Leadership Institute Advisory Council

The First 5 Leadership Institute’s Advisory Council is a small group of thought partners who will help shape the Institute’s design, implementation, and evaluation.

Our advisory council members bring a range of perspectives, professional expertise, and lived experience. They are committed to building an inclusive, innovative, and sustainable supports for California’s early childhood leaders.