The E3 School
A model for early learning.
A catalyst for change in Virginia.
The E3 School
10 Years + Thousands Of Children, Families, Teachers + Programs Impacted
Our Story
It all started with a big idea cooked up by a visionary philanthropist and founding board member for E3: Elevate Early Education and The E3 School, Jane Batten. She along with Mayor Paul Fraim, Lisa Howard, business leaders, the City of Norfolk, and the YMCA worked together to create a public-private partnership, mixed-income and “proof of concept” school to drive innovation, impact, policy change and investment in early education in the region and state.
Over 10 years ago, The E3 School was created from scratch as a high-quality implementation model for children ages one to five. The leadership visited programs across the nation and researched international programs to inform the work. From the beginning, our goal was to impact over 130+ children who attend the school each year, replicate and scale the model in partnership with the University of Virginia to impact even more children and families.
We set out to prove that when ALL children have equitable access to quality programs regardless of their zip code, they will enter kindergarten with the academic and social skills they need to thrive. Our school in partnership with philanthropy has educated 1,200+ children, provided 121+ scholarships and raised almost $3 million dollars for The Scholarship Fund.
The school’s model was replicated and scaled through the development of the STREAMin3 curriculum, professional development, coaching and assessment funded by E3: Elevate Early Education and developed by the University of Virginia. The creation of a high-quality implementation model and data-driven approach increased equitable access for thousands of children and families, improved quality in classrooms, and supported teachers and programs. It led to shifting the conversation from access to access to quality for all children and historic investments.
Over 5,400 publicly-funded, early childhood classrooms across Virginia are using our model. The STREAMin3 curriculum is the most widely used early childhood curriculum in Virginia.
2025 Quality, Early Literacy + Readiness Results
- Teachers are engaged in high-quality interactions with children in every classroom.
- All classrooms met or exceeded the threshold for quality when compared to other Virginia classrooms.
- Most children are within or above the expected developmental ranges for math, self-regulation, and social skills.
- Most children have strong literacy skills within or above expected ranges in all areas, which is well above Virginia averages.
- There are some children who need more intervention and support in all areas.
