About Us
Excel by Eight partners with families and communities to improve health and education outcomes for Arkansas children prenatal to age eight.
Excel by Eight was established as the Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading in 2011. Our mission was to ensure all children read at grade level by the end of third grade. With the support of our more than 30 partner organizations, we received national recognition for our work to help improve parent and community engagement, school readiness, classroom instruction, attendance, and summer learning.
Despite these successes, we recognized there’s more progress to be made. That’s why we broadened our efforts in 2019 to help all children – from prenatal to age eight – meet their full educational and health potential.
Excel by Eight is a team of policy makers, health care professionals, educators, nonprofit leaders, and community organizers committed to increasing children’s health and education outcomes by:
- Building models for change in communities around the state.
- Identifying policy barriers that make it difficult for communities to build and strengthen their grids of resources.
- Enhancing public understanding of early childhood development to encourage action to build strong resource grids statewide.
Our vision is that Arkansas is a state where all children have a strong start to reach their full potential.
Strong Start Statement
Excel by Eight acknowledges that every child in Arkansas deserves a strong start, but not every child starts in the same place.
A strong start means education and health outcomes are not determined by barriers related to age, disability, gender, income, race/ethnicity, geography, or community resources.
Family, community, and policymakers play a vital role in ensuring a strong start is available for every child.
Our Team
Angela Duran
Executive Director, Excel by Eight Angela Duran is executive director of Excel by Eight. She has spent more than 25 years engaged in program and policy development, strategic planning, research and evaluation, and project and organizational management in the...
La Shawn Grimes
Project Consultant, Excel by Eight La Shawn Grimes is a Project Consultant at Excel by Eight. She has three adult children and one granddog. She has more than 10 years in the education field, ranging from teaching in an early childhood setting to teaching English to...
Sanci Richardson
Communities Manager, Excel by Eight Sanci Hughes Richardson is a results-oriented consultant with extensive experience in community and economic development. Leveraging decades of investment in expertise and relationships in the public and private sectors, she...
Tori Scott
Communities Manager, Excel by Eight Tori Scott is a Communities Manager with Excel by Eight, supporting strategies in Independence County and the city of Little Rock. She started her career in tech consulting and has previously co-founded a tech-focused investment...
Anna Strong
Executive Director, Arkansas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics Anna Strong is a member of the Excel by Eight Foundations Executive Committee. As executive director of the Arkansas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (ARAAP), she leads health...
Beth Tody
Regional Coordinator, Excel by Eight Beth Tody is a Regional Coordinator for Excel by Eight, supporting the design and implementation of a local plan for improving health and education outcomes and eliminating disparities for children in Sevier County. Prior to her...
Jamie Ward
President, Arkansas Association for Infant Mental Health Jamie Ward is the owner of Curricula Concepts, Inc. Her current focus is using her more than 25 years of experience to train early educators and caregivers on the importance of engaging families and health and...
Adena White
Communications Director, Excel by Eight Adena J. White is an accredited public relations professional and social-impact storyteller with 15 years of experience leading communications efforts for nonprofit organizations. She founded Blackbelt Media in 2017 to tell the...
Alison Williams
Coalitions Director, Excel by Eight Alison Williams is Excel by Eight’s Coalitions Director. From 2016-2023, she served as Chief of Staff to Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, supporting his transformational vision for the State. In 2022, she led Governor Hutchinson’s...
Jessi Rice Woods
Communities Director, Excel by Eight Jessi Rice Woods is communities director with Excel by Eight, supporting policy and local planning work in Conway, Independence, Jefferson, Union, and Sevier counties as well as the city of Little Rock. Early in her career, Jessi...