Thursday, October 30, 2025
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Hilton Garden Inn West Little Rock
10914 Kanis Road
Little Rock, Arkansas
Registration is open for the fourth annual Excel by Eight Foundations Collaborative Summit. This in-person event will bring together partners and communities across the Excel by Eight network to celebrate recent legislative successes, share updates on early implementation, and explore what’s next for strengthening early childhood foundations in Arkansas.
What to Expect
At this year’s event, we will celebrate recent legislative successes and share updates on early implementation. We’ll also unpack federal policy changes on Medicaid and SNAP and highlight philanthropic and government-funded innovations that are shaping the future of early childhood in Arkansas.
We’re excited to preview three of the sessions already confirmed for the agenda, with additional panels and speakers to be announced in the weeks ahead.
Collaborating to Improve Outcomes for Maternal Health
This conversation brings together leaders advancing maternal health in Arkansas to discuss how new legislation, expanded doula access, and federal investments are shaping care for mothers and babies statewide. Confirmed panelists include:
- Anna Strong, Arkansas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (Moderator)
- Pearl McElfish, UAMS
- Nicolle Fletcher, Doula Alliance of Arkansas
The Impact of Federal Policy Changes on Medicaid and SNAP
This session will examine how recent federal changes to Medicaid and SNAP will affect young families in Arkansas. Following the discussion, participants will join small-group conversations on maternal health, infant/toddler health, and food insecurity to explore the benefits and challenges of these policies and next steps to address these impacts.
- Christin Harper, Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families
- Elisabeth Wright Burak, Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families
Philanthropic and Government Investments in Innovation
This session will highlight how philanthropic and government partners are driving innovation to strengthen Arkansas’s early childhood system. Panelists will explore efforts such as expanding access to LENA programs, building shared services for child care providers, improving retirement options for early childhood educators, creating new environments for dyadic mental health services, and advancing Family Partners for Ready Learners.
- Jamie Ward, Curricula Concepts (Moderator)
- Nikki Edge, UAMS
- Shannon Kenney, UAMS
- Jamie Rayford, Forward Arkansas
- Jessi Rice Woods, Excel by Eight
- Alison Williams, Excel by Eight
Registration
Register today and be part of the work to strengthen early childhood in Arkansas.
