Nicholas Gallery (top) with Raylea (L) and Cherish Casey (R) at Ellis. When Nicholas Gallery’s daughter Raylea graduates from Ellis Pre-K this summer, that will be a second major milestone for father and daughter to celebrate. After 16 months in foster care, Raylea was reunited with her father when he won custody in June 2024. This family success demonstrates the determination and resilience of the father and daughter, and the wraparound support that Ellis offered them. Nic

Grogan & Company President Georgina Winthrop showcases highlights from the gallery's featured works. On Wednesday evening, April 15, Ellis hosted a reception at Grogan & Company Auctioneers on Charles Street. The evening offered an exclusive private preview of Grogan’s upcoming spring collection. Guests admired fine art, including paintings, etchings, lithographs and photographs, and some dazzling jewelry to be auctioned later in the season. Mingling over drinks and assorted

Boston’s universal pre‑K initiative was launched in 2005 by then‑Mayor Thomas Menino, who called for Boston Public Schools (BPS) to expand pre-K access alongside a quality improvement plan known as Boston K1DS. Ellis Early Learning has been part of that effort from the beginning. Today, Ellis has four classrooms funded through BPS: Bruins, Celtics, and Patriots in the South End, and Maple in Jamaica Plain. All Ellis preschool classrooms use the BPS Focus Curriculum, a play‑ba

The 2026 YW Achievers at the awards ceremony on June 4. We’re proud to celebrate Ellis CEO Lauren Cook, who was honored on June 4 as part of the 2026 Academy of Women Achievers, presented by YW Boston. This prestigious recognition highlights women leaders whose vision, leadership, and dedication are creating lasting change across Greater Boston. Held at the Westin Copley Place during YW Boston’s 160th anniversary year, the 31st annual ceremony brought together civic, nonprofi

With 100% participation, the Ellis Meal program keeps all our students fueled for a day of learning. A day of learning, play, and development can’t happen when children are hungry, yet too often that’s the challenge they face. Last year, one in three Massachusetts families experienced child‑level food insecurity, according to Project Bread, an organization that provides food assistance in the Commonwealth. Through the Ellis Meal Program, every child at Ellis is served breakfa

This spring, the Ellis community came together for two signature celebrations: the Spring Social at 66 Berkeley Street and a community gathering at The Haven in Jamaica Plain. Ellis Educator Sarah Bukhari shares a powerful reminder at the Spring Social: the future begins in early childhood classrooms, where educators shape the success of the next generation. Honoring Educators and Impact at the Ellis Spring Social Ellis friends gathered for the Ellis Early Learning Spring So

A new Ellis initiative is working to strengthen the Massachusetts child care system. The Ellis FCC Network gathered with members of the Ellis Early Learning team to celebrate their launch last year. Launched last year with a generous restricted gift from an anonymous donor, the Ellis Family Child Care (FCC) Network marks Ellis’s expansion into home‑based early education and care. The Ellis FCC Network is the first such system established in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts i

L to R: Paul and Pia Miller and Suzanne Dwyer were among the Ellis Early Learning Fund members who joined us for the Gratitude Breakfast. On Wednesday, March 11, more than two dozen supporters of the Ellis Early Learning Fund gathered for a delicious breakfast from Flour Bakery + Cafe. This event offered a welcome opportunity to mingle with donors and staff and learn more about the organization’s recent work. CEO Lauren Cook spoke about two ambitious new initiatives launched

Ashley Storms and João Ricardo Santos’s connection to Ellis Early Learning began even before they had their son Lucas, now in his fourth year at the Jamaica Plain center. While attending Boston University for her undergraduate degree in 2009, Ashley was a Jumpstart volunteer through AmeriCorps, helping to implement the organization's early education literacy programming. “We would come to Ellis three times a week to read in the classrooms. The teachers always connected the st

Tiffany Sheets (second from left), pictured with the full cohort of 2026 Light of Dawn awardees and scholarship winners. Ellis Early Learning is proud to announce that Tiffany Sheets, Assistant Vice President of Programs, has been named a recipient of the 2026 Light of Dawnn Awards. The awards honor Dawnn Ashley Jaffier, a young nonprofit worker who was killed in 2014, by recognizing nonprofit workers who demonstrate Dawnn’s spirit of compassion and unwavering commitment to

L to R: Lauren Cook, Ellis CEO; Patti Keenan; and Dawn Hayes, Ellis Chief Advancement Officer celebrate Patti's decades of impact. In February, we said goodbye to an exemplar of the Ellis vision: Patricia D. Keenan, Ellis Vice President of Advancement, Community, and Equity. The final days of February were full of excitement and mixed emotions as our community said goodbye to Patti, celebrating her retirement and honoring her impact at Ellis. You can read more about the mark

Honoring Patricia D. Keenan and welcoming Dawn Hayes L to R: Patti Keenan and Dawn Hayes on Ellis's South End campus. This February, Ellis Early Learning will celebrate the retirement of Patricia D. Keenan, Vice President of Advancement, Community, and Equity, whose leadership over the past five years has helped propel Ellis into a new season of growth and innovation. Patti is succeeded by Dawn Hayes, who steps into the role of Chief Advancement Officer. When Patti joined E

Mr. Phil (left) and his music liven up many Ellis celebrations. Phil Berman – “Mr. Phil” to all Ellis children – followed a winding path to his career in music and early childhood education, but once he found his way, he knew he was where he belonged. After studying and working in serious adult theater, Phil found work at the Brookline Puppet Showplace and quickly produced 10 programs for 10 weeks, all targeted to children under three. “That was a trial by fire! I was totall

Highlights from a season of events that capped off a remarkable year. Celebrating Ellis and Our 140th Birthday! On November 6, 2025, the Ellis community gathered at the historic Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts for Celebrating Ellis and Our 140th Birthday. Team members, families, friends, and advocates of early education came together to honor 140 years of impact at Ellis, and to help launch the decades ahead. With remarkable attention to detail from the team at

Part of a series: Where Education Begins Pree Dawn teaches infants in our Ladybugs classroom. As an Ellis Infant educator, Pree Dawn begins each day with drop-offs, greeting families, welcoming the students, and connecting with parents about their child’s latest updates. Those conversations help guide everything that follows during the day. Pree and her co-teachers in the Ladybugs classroom – Emani, Tiaja, and Niurka – shape the curriculum around each child’s unique needs an

Part of a series: Where Education Begins For Jackie Deschamps and her husband, Steve Krikorian, choosing Ellis for their children felt natural from the very beginning. As neighbors of Ellis’s South End campus, they were thrilled to secure a spot before their first child, Axel, was even born. The Krikorian Family (L to R): Jackie, Steve, Axel, and Wyn Axel began in the Infant program in 2023 at just three months old, followed by his younger brother, Wyn, in 2025 at two months

Part of a series: Where Education Begins Not many people think of the words “infant” and “curriculum” together, but Ellis takes education of infants as seriously as the word curriculum implies. The new Infant curriculum, collaboratively developed with Neighborhood Villages (NV) and five early childhood programs in Boston, will take the excellence of Ellis’s programs for its youngest learners to a new level. It will provide guidance for teachers, educational enrichment for inf

Edie (left) and Cecilia (right) Each week at Ellis’s South End locations, two remarkable women bring joy, care, and extra hands to our youngest learners. Cecilia and Edie have very different roles, but both share one thing: They are cherished volunteers whose warmth touches every child, family, and teacher at Ellis. For 13 years, Cecilia has been a beloved “abuela” at Ellis, bringing love, care, and joy to every child she meets. Cecilia came to Ellis through the ABCD Foster

Sarah Bukhari joined Ellis in November 2022, and it didn’t take long for her to feel at home. Already part of the Jamaica Plain community, she was thrilled to be placed close to her family, and the match turned out to be “perfect,” she says. Sarah and her son Mohamed at the Ellis JP Back to School Party last month! Originally an elementary school teacher in Pakistan, Sarah moved to the U.S. in 2012 and faced the challenge many immigrant educators know well: her teaching cred

At Ellis, learning and discovery don’t take a break over the summer. Our little learners enjoyed a season full of curiosity, connection, and joy. From splashing at the Boston Common Frog Pond to gliding across the Public Garden on the iconic Swan Boats, our explorers experienced the best of Boston’s summer traditions. Back on campus at Ellis, water play days kept the energy high and the children cool. But the warmest months at Ellis are more than fun in the sun. Seasonal ex