Launch a LENA Program
Launch a LENA Program
Bring LENA to Your Community
LENA works with a wide range of partner organizations to improve early language environments and boost kindergarten readiness — school districts, state agencies, hospitals, CCR&Rs, libraries, Head Start organizations, and more.
To become one of our partners and offer a LENA program in your community, just follow the five steps below. We're here to work through these steps with you, so please don't hesitate to get in touch!
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Step 1 - Select a LENA program.
- LENA Grow offers practice-based professional development for infant, toddler, and preschool teachers and for family child care providers.
- LENA Start builds school readiness and strengthens families with parent-group classes.
- LENA SP provides a detailed picture of children's language environments for researchers, speech-language pathologists, and others who need scientifically reliable speech-language measurements.
We encourage you to connect early on with a member of the LENA team who can review the core program implementation components and answer any initial questions you may have. We are here to collaborate with you throughout the planning process to help ensure that you and your community partners are set up for success!
Step 2 — Gather community partners and resources.
Step 2 — Gather community partners and resources.
As you prepare to bring a LENA program to your community, think about the program as a component of a broader early childhood initiative to boost literacy, interactive talk, and adult caregiving skills. Whether you’re joining an existing coalition or creating a new one, building a network of partners will be key to a successful implementation.
Who are the leaders, catalyzers, and mission-based organizations in your community who could help you promote awareness of the need for interactive talk, recruit participants, share your program's success, and support and generate sustainable funding?
Our team is happy to lead or join calls, webinars, or in-person presentations to support partner engagement. We can also provide presentation decks and shareable resources that explain the importance of early interaction and give background on LENA.
Resources
- Download the Guide To Funding Your LENA Program to help assess your funding needs for the program. Our partners have used a variety of funding sources, including grants, local philanthropic partners, research partners, school district budgets, economic council budgets, intervention agencies, and in-kind funding of staff time and resources.
- Download the Community Mapping Worksheet to help you think through and plan your initiative.
- Explore our tip sheet on Best Practices for Engaging Community Partners.
Step 3 — Formalize a program agreement with LENA.
With your funding, partners, staffing, and locations in place, you’re ready to sign a program agreement with LENA. The agreement will formalize the partnership and trigger the final steps in the process of beginning your program.
Step 4 - Get your team trained.
LENA team members will train your staff and administrators on how to use the program and technology. Our staff will ensure that everyone in your group — from coordinators to administrators — is comfortable and proficient with LENA. We’ll help you finalize logistics before launch day, from ordering materials to entering data into LENA Online.
Step 5 - Program launch!
Throughout the life of your program, LENA’s Program Success team will be available to support you and ensure your program and initiative are meeting their goals. Every program includes full training on implementation and use of LENA’s hardware and software. From parent recruitment to outcome evaluation, our team will check with you regularly to answer questions and strategize solutions.
Resources
- Explore our Guide to Recruiting Families for Community Programs to get practical guidance on how to begin finding and registering participants.
Where are you in your LENA journey?
Take our LENA Readiness Assessment to find out!
