We work toward measurably better outcomes across five key result areas:
Our Story
Back in the early 1990s, conditions for children and families in Georgia were among the worst in the nation. The private and public sectors were busy working to help—but not together.
In response, Gov. Zell Miller and the Georgia General Assembly established a statewide initiative and community-driven model for aligning efforts across sectors—Georgia Family Connection. Its purpose was clear: coordinate services and communities to improve the educational, social, economic, and physical well-being of Georgia’s most vulnerable children and families.
Georgia Family Connection comes together through two distinct but connected change-makers: a statewide network and Georgia Family Connection Partnership (GaFCP). Each strengthens the other—and together, they form Georgia Family Connection.
Georgia Family Connection’s Mission
The Georgia Family Connection statewide network work alongside children, families, and communities to craft local solutions that maximize resources and make systems more effective and efficient.
Georgia Family Connection Collaboratives equip local service agencies and organizations with the tools and methods they need to be more effective: helping them develop and work together on integrated strategies to improve child, family, and community well-being.
Our statewide network cultivates collaboration among community service providers: reducing duplication of efforts, allowing everyone to do more with the resources available, and maximizing the ROI in Georgia Family Connection.
County Collaboratives fill in service gaps in our communities by functioning as an incubator for direct services to families and children when a need isn’t being met. We also respond to urgent situations by maintaining strong relationships and the infrastructure necessary to deliver timely support.
This is the only statewide network of its kind in the country, and Georgia Family Connection Collaboratives have a unique vantage point—not only to see the big picture, but also to operate effectively at a local level. Any issue we’ve addressed, every action we’ve supported, all the success we’ve helped to achieve have been a shared effort.
Georgia Family Connection would not exist without the bipartisan support of Georgia’s executive and legislative leadership. Their continued investment in our work demonstrates that healthy children who are ready for school, succeed in school, and thrive in stable, self-sufficient families is a priority for all Georgians.
Georgia Family Connection Partnership’s Mission
GaFCP strengthens Georgia Family Connection Collaboratives in all 159 counties by cultivating local action, uniting partners, leveraging resources, and fostering informed decision-making that improves systems and outcomes for every child and family.
GaFCP develops effective partnerships with state leaders, private enterprises, and other stakeholders to link the Georgia Family Connection network with public and private funding, resources, talent, and innovation.
GaFCP unites the Georgia Family Connection statewide network in a shared framework that promotes consistent, ongoing collaboration and peer learning—equipping Collaboratives in all 159 counties to draw on communities’ collective wisdom and experience across the state.
GaFCP empowers leaders across Georgia by making data accessible and providing practical tools, training, and technical assistance to support informed decision-making. We also serve as trusted experts on child and family well-being and community dynamics, sharing insights with state- and national-level audiences.
The GaFCP Outcomes Map developed with input from our local, state, and national partners is a strategy that clearly connects our work at the state level to our desired outcomes of improved conditions for Georgia’s children and families.
As a learning-based organization, we maintain a system of accountability—making things measurably better by forging relationships in trust, learning from our successes and our missteps, and being loyal stewards of our resources.
Our Core Values
We believe in the power of connection—convening, collaborating, being inclusive, and bringing the right people with the right resources to the table for a common goal.
We believe all people have the ability to become productive citizens—helping people reach their potential by empowering the children and families of our communities, and the partners and stakeholders who support them.
We believe in accountability—making things measurably better by forging relationships in trust, by learning from our successes and our missteps, and by being loyal stewards of our resources.
We believe that lasting change is local—lending support, knowledge, and partnerships to craft local solutions to local challenges.
We believe that by working together we can nurture children and families who thrive in vibrant communities—everywhere.
Our History
1991 – Gov. Zell Miller establishes a two-year pilot initiative designed to coordinate services for the educational, social, economic, and physical well-being of children in response to Georgia ranking 50th in inaugural national KIDS COUNT report. Fifteen communities volunteer to participate in the two-year pilot initiative.
1993 – State legislature appropriates funds to establish a state-level technical assistance system to support the original county Collaborative organizations.
1995 – Georgia Family Connection adopts the state’s framework for measuring community and state progress in five areas:
- healthy children
- children ready to start school
- children succeeding in school
- stable, self-sufficient families
- strong communities
1996–2001 – Georgia Family Connection helps Georgia improve eight out of 10 measures of child well-being.
2001 – After 10 years of steady growth, public and private leaders realized the statewide network required formalized oversight. State government, philanthropy, and community-based organizations launch Georgia Family Connection Partnership (GaFCP). GaFCP’s unique position as a public-private partnership enabled us to serve as a conduit for government, the private sector, and communities by connecting their efforts to better support children and families.
2002 – Gov. Sonny Perdue allocates funding to final five Collaborative organizations, ensuring that all 159 counties are part of the statewide Georgia Family Connection network, making it the only statewide network of its kind in the nation.
2003 – The Annie E. Casey Foundation names GaFCP the KIDS COUNT grantee, further enhancing our ability to lead discussions among state and local leaders about the challenges Georgia faces, and poised us to offer positive solutions.
2004 – All 159 counties in the state voluntarily become part of the Georgia Family Connection statewide network with an expanded focus on overall child and family well-being.
2008 – The Brookings Institution presents GaFCP with an international Innovation Award sponsored through the Community Indicators Consortium for programs that effectively use information to drive change in their communities.
2011 – GaFCP ventures out on a statewide listening tour. Representatives visit Collaboratives in all 159 counties to tap into their wisdom and local perspective before restructuring our technical assistance, resources, and identity.
2016 – Georgia Family Connection celebrates 25 years connecting and convening key community members committed to improving the well-being of children and families. Georgia Family Connection rebrands to strengthen the network’s messaging and visual identity as we embark on our second quarter century empowering our communities to craft local solutions based on local decisions.