In 2011, Utah leaders visited Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) to learn how to expand social and economic mobility for children and families in their state. They believed Harlem’s success could be replicated in their own communities — and they set out to prove it.
Over the last 15 years, they have done just that. After visiting HCZ, Utah private and public sector leaders united to launch Promise Partnership Utah, now a member of the StriveTogether network, to support student success. What began as inspiration has grown into a sustained partnership with HCZ — one that has led to the recent passage of the state-level Raising Expectations through Accountability, Community, and Hope (REACH) Initiative through Senate Bill (SB) 165. The Reach Initiative will support partnerships dedicated to helping young people across Utah from cradle to career.
“Utah’s SB 165 represents a powerful commitment to aligning education and community systems around long-term economic mobility,” said Christian Rhodes, HCZ Chief National Impact Officer. “The REACH Initiative it creates has the potential to build cradle-to-career pathways that ensure more young people have access to a thriving adulthood.”
Utah is one of the many places where HCZ — through its National Impact Team — supports communities in developing their own cradle-to-career strategies. Through this work, the organization is scaling its proven model, influencing policy, and supporting place-based partnerships nationwide — as seen most recently in Maryland, where HCZ partnered with Gov. Wes Moore to bring to life the ENOUGH Act.
Discover more about the REACH Initiative, HCZ’s work with Promise Partnership Utah, and how Utah is working to ensure children and families have the support they need to thrive.
REACH and the Power of Place-Based Work
For years, Promise Partnership Utah has engaged leaders across the Salt Lake region to better align systems and expand opportunity for children and families. But turning that work into statewide policy required both momentum and a model.
That model came from Maryland.
After seeing how HCZ partnered with Gov. Wes Moore to advance the ENOUGH Act, Promise Partnership Utah moved to bring a similar approach to their state. Building on years of deep cross-sector collaboration — engaging various individuals, organizations, communities, businesses, and schools committed to improving outcomes for children — Promise Partnership Utah secured buy-in from local government leaders through their steadfast demonstration of what coordinated, place-based work can achieve.
No single organization or system can address the full range of challenges children and families face. Lasting change requires a connected system of support. The REACH Initiative establishes a statewide framework to support community-based partnerships across Utah focused on improving economic mobility. It aligns efforts across education, health care, workforce development, business, housing, and community services, while helping communities coordinate resources, make data-driven decisions, and track progress over time.
It will also foster philanthropic investment, and build the infrastructure for shared accountability. The initiative has the potential to support 24 neighborhoods and regions, reaching more than 200,000 young people and their families.
The Path to Statewide Impact
Utah’s progress didn’t happen overnight. It reflects over a decade of coordinated effort, relationship building, and strategic investment.
“The genius of Harlem Children’s Zone is that they never dissipated their energy, they remained relentlessly focused and that focus is what makes this work possible,” Bill Crim, CEO of Promise Partnership Utah, said.
Timeline of events leading to the REACH Initiative:
- 2016: United Way of Salt Lake passes a backbone funding bill directing $3 million annually to six organizations coordinating cross-sector partnerships — strengthening infrastructure and building trust across schools, nonprofits, government, and philanthropy.
- 2017-21: Utah community organizations work steadily to execute placed-based strategies.
- 2021: Promise Partnership Utah engages HCZ’s William Julius Wilson Institute (WJWI) for strategic advising and technical assistance. WJWI helps build alignment among municipal, philanthropic, educational, and state leaders across Utah.
- HCZ Founder and President and Founder of WJWI Geoffrey Canada connects with mayors and philanthropic leaders.
- Mr. Canada joins leaders at a statewide roundtable, reinforcing the importance of coordination and shared accountability.
- 2022-23: Promise Partnership Utah continues to build on its learnings from WJWI.
- 2024: Promise Partnership Utah cultivates strong relationships with systems leaders — including Elizabeth Grant, superintendent of Salt Lake City Schools and participant in WJWI’s 2024 Place-Based Education Leaders Design Fellowship, and Rich Nye, senior adviser on education to the governor of Utah.
- With support from HCZ, Promise Partnership Utah maps a path to scale place-based work statewide: a study to assess implementation, followed by cross-sector convenings to turn insight into action.
- 2025: the Utah Legislature passes the Educational and Workforce Development Study Bill, leading to a statewide report developed with the University of Utah’s Gardner Policy Institute.
- Geoffrey Canada and Christian Rhodes, along with leaders from StriveTogether and Partners for Rural Impact, meet with Utah Governor Spencer Cox, senior members of his administration, and major philanthropic and faith-based institutions to explore how place-based partnerships can expand opportunity for young people.
- 2026: Utah passes Senate Bill 165, establishing the REACH Initiative.
The sequence of events over the last decade reinforces what HCZ has demonstrated in Harlem: aligning programs, resources, and partners produces stronger outcomes.
A Model for Community-Driven Change
From neighborhood initiatives to statewide legislation, Utah demonstrates that cross-sector coordination drives impact. For Promise Partnership Utah and the communities they support, REACH is more than legislation. It is a path that ensures every child, no matter where they live, has the consistent support needed to thrive.
As Mr. Canada shared, “At HCZ, we see the best work in America. And I am telling you, that’s right here in Utah. The work that’s happening here right now is a model for what could change America.”
To learn more about our national work and other communities we’re supporting, visit our website.