National Black Child Development Institute

MISSION

For more than 40 years, the National Black Child Development Institute (NBCDI) has been at the forefront of engaging leaders, policymakers, professionals, and parents around critical and timely issues that directly impact Black children and their families. We are a trusted partner in delivering culturally relevant resources that respond to the unique strengths and needs of Black children around issues including early childhood education, health, child welfare, literacy, and family engagement. With the support of our Affiliate network in communities across the country, we are committed to our mission “to improve and advance the quality of life for Black children and their families through education and advocacy.” 

VISION

NBCDI envisions a society that ensures a successful future for all children.

HISTORY

From its inception, NBCDI’s focus has been on achieving positive outcomes for vulnerable children who suffer from the dual legacies of poverty and racial discrimination.  The organization was launched by the Black Women’s Community Development Foundation, whose leadership, in the wake of the Civil Rights Movement, was deeply concerned about the unsatisfactory conditions faced by families determined to raise healthy Black children.  By organizing NBCDI as a national advocacy group, they created a unified movement to develop strategies to improve the life circumstances of the Black child through policy change.  

Four years after NBCDI’s incorporation, its leaders launched the National Affiliate Network to mobilize volunteers at the grassroots level.  Today, Affiliates operate in over 20 communities and are composed of dynamic and diverse individuals who implement nationally driven programs for children and families on the ground.  

For 38 years, NBCDI was led by Evelyn K. Moore, who got her start as a teacher in the ground-breaking Perry Pre-school/High Scope program, which became the model for Head Start.  She has dedicated her entire professional career to improving outcomes for our society’s most vulnerable children. Her leadership was followed by that of renowned early childhood educator, writer and leader, Carol Brunson Day, who led NBCDI from 2007 to 2011.  Dr. Felicia DeHaney served as President and CEO from 2011 to 2014 when she joined the Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan, as Director of Education and Learning Programs. Cindra Taylor, President of BCDI-Atlanta and a member of the organization’s National Board of Directors, currently serves as the interim President while a nationwide search is underway.

Historically, NBCDI has built a strong reputation for its work in early care and education and child welfare.  Over the years, our mission has benefited millions of children and their families.  As a leading organization working on behalf of children of color, NBCDI’s future is about growth and sustainability, forging new boundaries and promoting strengths-based programs and policies that lift up our children in the context of their families, communities and cultures.