Impact Report 2022-2023
Celebrating a decade of innovating for early learners
I’m overwhelmed with pride and gratitude as we celebrate 10 years (!) at VOCEL. Ten years of bold yet thoughtful innovation. Ten years of promoting early education equity and democratizing brain science. Ten years of putting people first. Ten years of growing our budget, our team and most importantly, our impact. And none of it was accomplished alone. From the very beginning, VOCEL was built through partnership. Our story is one of co-creation, community power, collaboration, and change.
Join me as we look back, so we can dream forward.
Jesse Ilhardt
Executive Director & Co-Founder
Timeline
A look back at the pivotal moments that define VOCEL’s first ten years and inform our future.
2013
VOCEL receives its 501c3 determination
2014
VOCEL opens the doors of its full-day, year-round early learning center serving 18 children, ages 3-5
2016
VOCEL partners with community parents to launch Child Parent Academy pilot
2017
VOCEL opens Child Parent Academy’s second site through partnerships with local elementary school; expands early learning center to children ages 15 months – 5 years
2018
As CPS scales pre-K in elementary schools, VOCEL closes its early learning center, and expands Child Parent Academy to 8 sites
2019
Child Parent Academy grows to 15 sites; planning begins for Building Early Learning Leaders and Powered by VOCEL, in response to feedback from school principals
2020
VOCEL launches pilots of Building Early Learning Leaders in Fall 2019 and Powered by VOCEL in Spring 2020
2021
Following requests from school principals, VOCEL launches teacher fellowship in partnership with A Better Chicago. With investment from Education Equity Fund, BELL grows from 5 to 12 schools
2022
VOCEL invests in CPS principal talent development, and partners with McCormick Foundation to design All In For Kids pilot.
VOCEL doubles the size of its Early Educators for Thriving Children teacher fellowship to reach 40 teachers and their 800 students
2023
Check out last year's Impact Report for more details on VOCEL's evolution.
Timeline
A look back at the pivotal moments that define VOCEL’s first ten years and inform our future.
2013
VOCEL receives its 501c3 determination
2014
VOCEL opens the doors of its full-day, year-round early learning center serving 18 children, ages 3-5
2016
VOCEL partners with community parents to launch Child Parent Academy pilot
2017
VOCEL opens Child Parent Academy’s second site through partnerships with local elementary school; expands early learning center to children ages 15 months - 5 years
2018
As CPS scales pre-K in elementary schools, VOCEL closes its early learning center, and expands Child Parent Academy to 8 sites
2019
Child Parent Academy grows to 15 sites; planning begins for Building Early Learning Leaders and Powered by VOCEL, in response to feedback from school principals
2020
VOCEL launches pilots of Building Early Learning Leaders in Fall 2019 and Powered by VOCEL in Spring 2020
2021
Following requests from school principals, VOCEL launches teacher fellowship in partnership with A Better Chicago. With investment from Education Equity Fund, BELL grows from 5 to 12 schools
2022
VOCEL doubles the size of its Early Educators for Thriving Children teacher fellowship to reach 40 teachers and their 800 students
2023
VOCEL invests in CPS principal talent development, and partners with McCormick Foundation to design All In For Kids pilot
Check out last year's Impact Report for more details on VOCEL's evolution.
VOCEL at 10
VOCEL Child Parent Academy
An innovative two-generation program where parents/caregivers and their children learn side by-side in weekly classes.
FY24 REACH:
24 School Partners
240 young children and their parents/caregivers
Powered by VOCEL
A version of the Child Parent Academy led by local parents for the communities they call home.
FY24 REACH:
10 School and Community Partners
20 parent leaders
100+ young children and their parents/caregivers
Early Educators for Thriving Children
A two year fellowship that combines cohort-based learning and personalized coaching to help early childhood teachers become experts in social-emotional learning and play-based instruction.
FY24 REACH:
At least 40 teachers
1,000+ students
Building Early Learning Leaders
A two-year fellowship that helps school leaders develop and execute a vision for early childhood excellence in their schools.
FY24 REACH:
At least 30 school leaders
At least 20 schools
2,000+ students
Parents as Leaders
Claribel Diaz first joined VOCEL as a participant in the VOCEL Child Parent Academy. Now she’s on the VOCEL staff as a family support specialist. Learn more about Claribel and her daughter Sharon in this video spotlight.
Powered by VOCEL was piloted in 2019 as a parent-led version of the VOCEL Child Parent Academy.
Now it’s our fastest growing program, growing from 4 sites in the fall of 2022 to 10 in the upcoming school year. In partnership with schools and community organizations, VOCEL identifies, trains, and coaches parent leaders — everyday moms and dads from some of the most disadvantaged neighborhoods in Chicago who want to help fellow parents and their young children thrive. Supported by VOCEL staff, these parent leaders connect with other parents in their neighborhoods and invite them to participate in a version of the Child Parent Academy, led by the parents themselves, for the communities they call home.
“[Elijo ser líder] para hacerme saber a mi misma que puedo hacerlo y soy capaz de estar en contacto con mamas que, al igual que yo, aprendemos en el camino…”
“[I choose to lead] so I can show myself that I can do it, and that I am capable of connecting with other moms who, like me, learn along the way…”
Parents (and Grandparents!) as Champions
Hear from Grant Gochnauer and Gabe Fontes, founding members of the Parents for VOCEL donor community, about the joys of seeing their daughters learn and grow through play.
Last fall, executive director Jesse Ilhardt was invited to share a TED Talk on how play helps a child’s brain grow. It’s now been viewed more than 1 million times by parents and advocates around the world.
Through the response to the TED Talk, we learned that many grandparents and parents of young children are eager to learn about brain science, play, and other best practices in early childhood — and are also looking for a tangible way to support families and children in disadvantaged neighborhoods across Chicago. We launched new giving communities called Parents for VOCEL and Grandparents for VOCEL in response. Supporters make a gift to enable families to participate in the VOCEL Child Parent Academy, and in return they join a community of fellow supporters for webinars, gatherings, and a curated newsletter.
“As parents and teachers, we share this universal desire for our kids to do well, and we will pour our energy and resources into making that happen. In these giving communities, we see parents sharing those resources to help all kids do well.”
Historically, schools have partnered with VOCEL on an a la carte basis: one school might have a teacher in the EETC fellowship, while another might host a VOCEL Child Parent Academy site.
Recently, we’ve seen a magnified impact from schools where they participated in VOCEL programs for parents, teachers and school leaders. To test and evaluate the potential impact, we partnered with the Robert R. McCormick Foundation to launch the All In For Kids pilot.
All In For Kids is a two-year pilot initiative that layers VOCEL’s programs in six school communities in the Englewood and Little Village neighborhoods — to establish an ecosystem-wide vision for early learning excellence. By training and supporting parents and caregivers, teachers, and school leaders, VOCEL will strengthen an entire school community's capacity to help their youngest learners thrive.
“Our partnership with VOCEL has taught me so much about early childhood and building a strong foundation for our students to succeed.”
Growing Our Team & Our Boards
A Growing Board of Directors
Five incredible individuals joined VOCEL’s Board of Directors in FY23, bringing diverse skills, knowledge, and lived experience to help guide VOCEL through its next era of evolution. At the turn of the fiscal year, we welcomed a new board chair after 10 years of board service from our outgoing chair. Read more about our new board members and the board chair transition on LinkedIn.
Associate Board Trivia Night
Each year, VOCEL’s Associate Board works together to support, amplify and celebrate our community’s impact across Chicago. This spring, the Associate Board hosted a Trivia Night celebration at Great Central Brewing Co. — their first since early 2020, reigniting a long-standing board tradition. The venue was completely packed — full of laughter, joy, and some friendly competition: a testament to our ever growing VOCEL Village of supporters.
-
Louis Hellebusch
GEM Realty Capital, Inc.
ChairmanNick Scodro
RBN Insurance Services
Vice ChairmanJennifer Alexander
Chicago Public Schools
Interim SecretaryJason Mueller
J.P. Morgan Private Bank Chicago
TreasurerJeannine Cleary
Supporting Literacy and MathStacey Gillet
Bloomberg PhilanthropiesLindy Hirschsohn
The Boston Consulting Group, Alumna PartnerFrank Karl
Kayne Anderson Capital AdvisorsLisa Kueng
InvescoPhyllis Lee
Manifold GroupCarrie Littman
The Boston Consulting GroupEllen Morgan
Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, Former Dean of AcademicsLaura Muriello
Pitch InAminah Wyatt-Jones
Ada S. McKinley Community Services, Inc.
-
Nick Coetzee
Axial
PresidentNicole Allen
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.Olivia Benjamin
LaSalle Investment ManagementRachel Berkowitz
BairdJessica Bohorquez
Snap Inc.Pierre de Smet
The Boston Consulting GroupHaley Ford
Chicago Public SchoolsLaura Pires Henares
The Boston Consulting GroupTejan Kapoor
AxialTimi Omotunde
The Boston Consulting GroupGabriel Rojas
University of Chicago Sociology PhD ProgramJohn Schmidt
GEM Realty Capital, Inc.Arielle Shanker
Shanker Education Consulting; Former Early Childhood EducatorErika Sulecki
The Boston Consulting Group; Former EducatorJoe Tereba
RSM US LLP
-
Cristen Brown
Senior Program Manager of VCPAMaritza Castillo
Child Parent Academy TeacherRaha Dempsey
Managing Director of Program StrategyClaribel Diaz
Family Support SpecialistAnais Gonzalez Nyberg
Development ManagerJamie Huenink
Senior Program Manager of EETCJesse Ilhardt
Executive Director & Co-FounderGreg Lowe
Director of DevelopmentDeb Perez
Partnerships ManagerNelly Pineda
Senior Program Manager of Powered by VOCELJulio Rodriguez
Marketing & Communications ManagerAlicia Stipe
Child Parent Academy TeacherMaria Dolores Vaca
Family Support SpecialistKayla Villalobos
Senior Director of ProgramsSandi Weiskirch
Director of Operations
Lists as of June 30, 2023. Visit www.vocel.org/staffandboard to view updated lists.
Financials
All financial data is preliminary, as of June 30, 2023. Audited financials will be available in Q4 2023.
| Cash and Equivalents | $997,086.67 |
| Accounts Receivable | $564,124.98 |
| Growth Reserve | $273,858.90 |
| Operating Reserve | $517,177.09 |
| Other Current Assets | $31,873.45 |
| Total Assets | $2,384,121.09 |
| Total Liabilities | $109,565.79 |
| Total Net Assets | $2,274,555.30 |
| Total Net Assets and Liabilities | $2,384,121.09 |
FY23 Revenue and Expenses
| Total Revenue | $1,843,166.88 |
| Total Expenses | $1,817,277.27 |
| Net Revenue | $25,889.61 |
Click on graphs to view larger.
Help VOCEL continue to listen, learn and innovate.
Thank you to all of our supporters!
Empowering Sponsors
Lindy Hirschsohn & Chris Coetzee
Lindy & Michael Keiser
Lead Sponsors
Mary & Paul Finnegan
Supporting Sponsors
Linda & Kevin Conway
The Hellebusch Family
Barbara Koren
Lisa Kueng & Tony Green
Christina & Jason Mueller
Table Sponsors
Lina Bankert
Brittany & Jerry Graunke
Cecily & Arthur Kaz
Carrie Littman & Nelson Iginla
Our Champions
All donors to VOCEL between May 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023. Listed alphabetically.
Individual, Corporate and Foundation
A Better Chicago
Allison Ackerman-Guberman
Ada S. McKinley Community Services, Inc.
Jamie Ahern
Lydia Alter
Jennifer Alter Warden & Robert Warden
AmazonSmile
Amgen Foundation
Andrew and Alice Fischer Charitable Trust
Carly Andrews
Anonymous Donors (13)
Yotam Ariav
Helen & Mike Arkes
Javier Arriola-Lopez
Sally Arundell & Nate Anderson
Steve Auman
Baird
Erin Baker
Audrey Ballard
Lina Bankert
Nataly Barrera
Judd Barron
Barron Development LLC
Rachel Bates
Olivia Benjamin
The Catherine J. Benjamin Trust
Rachel Berkowitz
Brian Binder
BlackRock
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Jessica & Marlon Bohorquez
Etta Boot
Boston Consulting Group, Inc
Ryan Bowman
Bright Promises Foundation
Brilliant Light LLC
Tracy & Tom Brooker
Andrew Brown
Debbie & Matthew Brown
Janet Brown
Susan Buckner
Vicky & Chuck Bush-Joseph
Amy & Gabe Cahill
Rebecca Campbell
Nick Canderan
Canon Solutions America
Derrik Castillo
Brian & Andrea Cercek
Craig & Ana B Channell
Hillary Child
Cleary ten Brink Family Foundation
Will Clevidence
Gaby Coetzee
Nick Coetzee
Helen Cohen
Constellation Brands
Linda & Kevin Conway
Bobby Cooney
Rob Crawford
Crown Family Philanthropies
Kaylyn Curran
Char & Larry Damron
Lauren & Lee Davidson
Tim Davitt
Leah Day
Pierre de Smet
Maya Defoe
Raha & David Dempsey
Hannah Deremo
Debra Dobbs in memory of Rudy Pallotto
Daniel Dorfman
Jason Drasner
DRW Foundation
Ravae Duhaney
Kate DuVall
Cynthia Dvorak
Matthew & Christina Eaves
Michael EbsenSusan Ellis
Angie Emrey
Envestnet Giving Program
Lilibeth Erazo
Malinda Eskra
EverThrive Illinois
Ainsley Faux
Lee Feingold
Jonathon & Valencia Fellows
Patricia & Jerry Fellows
Finnegan Family Foundation
Mary & Paul Finnegan
First Presbyterian Church of La Grange
Fogelson Family Foundation
Haley Ford & Todd Dummett
Janel Forde
Nick & Lisa Foussianes
Fox, Swibel, Levin & Carroll, LLP
Frechette Family Foundation
Stanley & Ruthie Friedell
Jennie Funk & Brian Jansen
Alfredo Garcia
Sean Garrett
Paul Gearen in honor of Barbara Koren
GEM Realty Capital
Micayla George
Aamer Ghaffar
The Gochnauer Family Foundation
Sam Goldberg
Goldberg Kohn Foundation
Marina Golemis
Edgar Gonzalez & Perla Gámez
Anais Gonzalez Nyberg & Riley Fang
Good Heart Work Smart Foundation
Brittany & Jerry Graunke
Dani Gross
Josh & Elena Grotto
Cornelia Grumman
GTCR
Daniel Guberman
Guggenheim Partners
Christina & Adam Hachikian
Blair Hannah
David & Sara Haufe
Julie & Stephen Hellebusch
Lou & Meredith Hellebusch
Dawn & Ted Helwig
Henry Crown and Company
Lindy Hirschsohn & Chris Coetzee
Allison Hobbs
Isaac Hock
Ronna Hoffberg
Becky Hogan
Jacqueline Horn
Sarah Horn
Houlihan Lokey
Ben & Jesse Ilhardt
Doug & Bonnie Ilhardt
IMC
Impact Grants Chicago
Pete & Jen Infelise
Invesco Mgt LLC
Michael Janik
Sage Jones
Deborah Jones-Miller
Pedro Junqueira
Cathy & Ethan Kahn
Ankeet & Lauren Kansupada
Tejan Kapoor
Frank & Lauren Karl
Zack Karmin
Calvin & Mary Katter
Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors Foundation
Cecily & Arthur Kaz
Lindy & Michael Keiser
Erin Kelly
Candice Kemeny
Lissette Khatib
Shelby King
Dianne Kirtley
Michelle Klein
Madeline Kojs
Tyna Korcz
Barbara Koren
Jack & Becky Krasaeath
Lisa Kueng & Tony Green
Casey Lane
Leigh Anne & Andrew Larsen
Latham & Watkins
Renee Lau
Carolyn & Mike Laughlin
Peter Lehrman
Shari Young Lewis
Lillian and Larry Goodman Foundations
Jessica Lisnich
Carrie Littman & Nelson Iginla in honor of Yury Carrasco
Kim & Tom Littman
Rose Lizarraga in honor of Lisa Kueng
Louis Calder Foundation
Bill & Diane Lowe
Jordan & Nevila Lowe
Stephanie & Greg Lowe
Melanie Madigan in honor of Kelly Powers
Makom Solel Lakeside Congregation in honor of Lou Hellebusch
Manifold Group
Doug & Amanda Marks
Jonathan & Stephanie Marks
Bob Marshall
Allison Mascioli
John Matson
Worldreader
William McIntosh in honor of Barbara Koren & Paul Gearen
Cheryl McPhilimy in honor of Lisa Kueng
Merchant Giving Project
Michael Reese Health Trust
Debra Michaels
Elizabeth Mihas
Christopher & Amanda Miller
Claire & Alexander Millet
Pete Mishos
Stacey Mitchell
Ruby Montenegro
Natalie Monterastelli
Ellen Morgan & Sheldon Zenner
Hannah Morley & Ittai Eres
Alex & Brenna Moss
Arlene Moss
Karen Moss-Lux
Amy Moy
Carrie Muehlbauer
Christina & Jason Mueller
Laura Muriello
Mona Mustafa
Jennifer Naguit
Rajiv Naidu
Neal & Stacey Nath
Edna Navarro Vidaurre
Diva Neims & Art Kuyakanon
Northern Trust
Lauren Nortz
Matt O'Connor
Liz O'Malley
Ethan Ong
Origami Works Foundation
Kristen O'Rourke
Mari Pagone-Franklin
Michelle Parekh
Irene & Rich Parisi
Katherine Parlove
Sarthak Patel
Amy Perkal
Lukas Petersen
Hutton Phillips
Maria Pinto
Ashley Pletz
Chad Podkulski
Kimberly Pokladowski
Teresa Pokladowski
Valerie Pokladowski
Angelica Pop
Kelly Powers
Sally & Tom Powers
Deepa Prasad
Hillary Preston
Kevin & Rachel Price
Kyle Prokup
Prudential
Pulte Family Charitable Foundation
Jessica & David Rabie
Mary Beth Rampolla in honor of Brian & Debbie Rampolla
Sarah & Lou Rassey
RBN Insurance
Kellie Rhodes-Gayles
Jacob Ringer & Dana Sodikoff
Viki & Tom Rivkin
Robert R. McCormick Foundation
Laura Roberts
Jesse Rubin
Sagalyn Family Foundation
Rohan Sajdeh
Ryan Sandahl
Andrea Sarther
Alex Schapira
Cathryn & Justin Schmaltz
Allison Schmidt
Johnathon Schmidt
Katherine Schoen
Jackie Schwartz
Nick & Ariele Scodro
Elissa Scrafano
Chris Seaman
Adam Seidenberg
Bari Seigerman in honor of Lindy Hirschsohn & Chris Coetzee
Noah Shaffer
Abraham Shahbain
Arielle Shanker & Matthew Lux
Danny Sheridan
Bonnie Shifrin
Maureen Shinners-Gearen & John P. Gearen
Andy Shlensky
Eryn Siegel
Lexi & Robert Silver
Ben Sommer
Ronald Sonenthal
Debbie Sprindzunas
Megan & Eric Stavriotis
Matthew Steinmetz
Bryan Stokes
Joseph Stokes in honor of Lisa Kueng
Rachel & Rush Sturges
Michael Sturman
Laura Sturrus
Susan and Stephen Baird Family Foundation
Dana Suskind
Scott & Patti Swakow
Vanessa Swakow
Ken Tallering in honor of Lindy Hirschsohn & Chris Coetzee
Pauline Taylor
Elodie Teboul
Joseph P. Tereba
Carol Teske
Stephanie Thai
Brooke Thayer
The Giving Back Fund
Susan Toth
Kim Tran
Tyson Foods
United Way of Metro Chicago
Julia Vigran
Vivo Foundation
Dirk & Donna Vos
Chris Wang
Orchid Wang
Wanlin Wang
Marcus & Anne Wedner in honor of Lindy Hirschsohn
Nate Weiskirch
Sandra Weiskirch
Keren Weiss
Matilda Wilhoite
Brenda Williams
Jodi & Chris Wine
Joe Winner
Wolter Investment Co LLC
Steve & Stephanie Yan
Steven Zoll & Ronna B. Rubinoff in honor of Lindy Hirschsohn
Alisa & Jason Zufall
Laura Zumdahl
Parents for VOCEL
Sally Arundell & Nate Anderson
Amy & Gabe Cahill
Jennie Funk & Brian Jansen
Grant Gochnauer & Gabriel Fontes de Faria
Brittany & Jerry Graunke
Ankeet & Lauren Kansupada
Frank & Lauren Karl
Nevila & Jordan Lowe
Alex & Brenna Moss
Irene & Rich Parisi
Joseph Patt & Maril Alsup
Amy & Mitch Perkal
Jessica & David Rabie
Cathryn & Justin Schmaltz
Nick & Ariele Scodro
Megan & Eric Stavriotis
Grandparents for VOCEL
Ted & Dawn Helwig
Tom & Kim Littman
Bill & Diane Lowe
Ellen Morgan & Sheldon Zenner
Kim & Bruce Scodro
Frank ten Brink & Jeannine Cleary
In-Kind Donors
Madison Case Walker
Fitch
Share Our Spare
Gift of Warmth Donors
Marion Ahearne
Allshouse-McLaughlin Family
Alphonse Family
Anderson Family
BBR Partners
Benford Family
Stephen Blatcher & Allison Mascioli
Bolero Family
Burik Family
Capers Family
Chang Family
Clayton Family
Corrao-Leonard Family
Lindsay Curran
Daly Family
Jacob Dodd
Drasner Family
Susan Ellis
Fellows Family
Patricia & Jerry Fellows
Dena Fellows & Family
Gibson Family
Giles Family
Gregg-Mitchell Family
Handwerk Family
Jackson Family
Kayne Anderson Capital Chicago
Keogh Family
Koo Family
Casey Lane
Katie Lindahl & Hans Harris
Mihas Family
Moll Family
Sarah Norris & Family
Parekh Family
Pemberton Family
Peterson Family
Rhodes-Gayles Family
Rigby Family
Seaman Family
Seymore Family
Shrake Family
Smith Family
Snyder Family
Sternberg/Weiss Family
Louis Tambellini
Larry and Ashley Taylor & Family
Taylor Family
Taylor-Smith Family
Vlahos-Madry Family
Weiss Family
Omar Yassin