McCormick Institute Ribbon Cutting Celebration

Friends, colleagues, partners, and funders recently gathered to celebrate the launch of the McCormick Institute for Early Childhood with a ceremonial ribbon cutting at National Louis University. 

The event featured addresses by NLU President Nivine Megahed, Robert R. McCormick Foundation Chair Scott Smith, NLU alumna and trustee Celena Sarillo, and McCormick Institute Executive Director Lisa Downey. 

Thanks to generous funding from the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, The McCormick Institute for Early Childhood officially launched on Tuesday, May 6, 2025.

NLU trains and prepares more Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) professionals than any other institution in Illinois. The Center for Early Childhood Leadership is the flagship program of the Institute and is nationally recognized as the premier organization for advancing leaders as levers of quality in ECEC. 

This year, the Institute will launch an applied research agenda designed to impact the preparation, sustainment, and advancement of the profession. The Institute will also leverage its research to engage community partners, advocates, and policy makers as it works to create lasting change for the profession that positively impacts children, families, and communities. The Institute will continue to lead innovation for the field of ECEC with programming that pushes the limits of what has been thought to be standard practice for the preparation of the field, while focusing on those areas of preparation where there are the most critical gaps and needs. 

The next era for the ECEC profession has arrived. The McCormick Institute for Early Childhood at National Louis University is excited to be a vital part of the continued conversation.