ExCELL brings together families, educators, literacy specialists, and community resources to support the development of early language and literacy success.

Home. School. Community. 

Learn how ExCELL supports the development of
​children's early language and literacy skills.

Our Mission

​​ExCELL brings together families, communities, and early childhood educators to ensure that children receive enriched and coordinated learning opportunities to support the development of the early language and literacy skills that are predictive of reading success.

​Our Program

Established in 2008, ExCELL continues to grow and provide its programming throughout the state of Virginia to promote high-quality early childhood experiences.
The ExCELL program has provided training and support to hundreds of classrooms, teachers/educators, and administrators, as well as thousands of families and children.

Evaluation results have been strong and positive. ​Teachers have demonstrated significant improvements in the quality of teacher-child interactions, the quality of classroom language and literacy environments, and the use of research-based instructional strategies. Results related to the families/parents indicated significantly enhanced home literacy environments and improved use of community resources. Child outcomes have consistently shown significant gains in all targeted early literacy skills, including 95 to 100 percent of children meeting benchmarks in three key predictors of later reading achievement (alphabet knowledge, emergent writing, phonological awareness). 

What is Family Engagement in Elementary School for the ExCELL Program? 

ExCELL's community partners have great things to say about the program. 

​"You were born with the power to change others. You change people by the way you treat them. That is what changes the human heart. Everyone is gifted in some way. We don't always open our gifts at the same time. And if someone has opened theirs before others, think nothing of it.
​Everyone will open theirs in time."
- Patricia Polacco