Dear John, 

50CAN launched in January 2011 to help advocates across the country expand the educational opportunities of America’s students. Over the past 10 years our local leaders have carried out 274 advocacy campaigns in 17 states. What have we learned about what it takes to secure wins for kids?

In this latest AdvocacyLabs report, we make use of exclusive data from a decade of education advocacy campaigns to explore the connection between the inputs in campaign plans and the outcomes local leaders seek. The results help shed light on what does and doesn't work in education advocacy and on the ways that advocates can use these insights to increase their odds of success. 

Each chapter in the report explores a key dimension of the campaigns over the past decade—their goals, strategies, tactics, people, budgets and outcomes. Together, they reveal the most essential factors behind our policy wins and provide a research-based foundation upon which to build the next decade of cutting-edge advocacy efforts. 

With schools severely disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, the one thing we know for certain is that we need effective education advocacy now more than ever. We hope that this report helps local advocates secure the policy changes that America’s students need to thrive in this new era.