Special Note 5/20/26: Items on this page in purple font are marked as such to indicate areas of opportunity for the Nevada ECAC to participate in and inform the PDG B-5 Sustainability Plan. Items in purple font and grey highlight are featured requests for the ECAC to consider on relevant agendas. Please visit https://nvecac.com for meeting materials, angendas, and information about the Nevada ECAC.

Sustainability Overview

On April 22, 2026, The University of Nevada, Reno – Center for Program Evaluation (CPE) team met with the Nevada Department of Education, Office of Early Learning and Development (OELD), Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5) Grant Manager and Assistant Grant Manager to provide technical assistance on sustainability planning. Together, the team drafted a process for the PDG B-5 team to develop a sustainability plan. Key documents that informed the discussion included Wyoming PDG B-5 Sustainability Plan and Minnesota PDG B-5 Grant Sustainability Planning Guide. These documents and other tools were used to generate a framework and process for Nevada's work. Support templates were drafted in Smartsheet to streamline tasks. A general work plan was also created to ensure accountability and efficiency.

The final plan and related tools and information will be available via request to Rachel Stepina (rachel.stepina@doe.nv.gov), the PDG B-5 online platform, and hyperlinked on the ECAC website.

Sustainability Framework

Nevada's overarching sustainability framework includes leveraging a combination of critical tasks, activities, and tools to be discussed and finalized by June 30, 2026. Nevada will utilize internal PDG B-5 and NDE infrastructure and support from the Nevada Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) to guide the planning process, actively engage in planning and making decisions, and monitor the plan.

Task 1: Identify Leadership and Develop Decision Making Infrastructure (Completed 5/20/26)

Task 2: Refine the List of Activities to Sustain (Completed)

Task 3: Evaluate Feasibility of Sustaining Activities (Completed)

Task 4: Develop the Sustainability Plan (In-Progress)

Task 5: Implement and Monitor Sustainability Plan

Task 1: Identify Leadership and Develop Decision Making Infrastructure

Leadership and decision making will primarily come from three core groups:

Sustainability Planning Project Team (PDG B-5 Leadership): This group will lead the sustainability planning process and is accountable for the completion of a plan at the end of the project period.
Sustainability Task Group (PDG Staff, Key Project Partners): This group is responsible for the development of the sustainability plan, assisting the Project Team to finalize a list of PDG activities, evaluate the feasibility of sustaining each activity, and formulating action plans.
Nevada ECAC: The ECAC will be asked to be responsible for providing feedback to the Task Group, adopting/endorsing the sustainability plan, and tracking implementation of action plans. (Request action during 5/20/26 Nevada ECAC General Meeting to formally accept this role.)

Figure 1. Sustainability Planning Process RACI Chart

Figure 1. Sustainability Planning Process RACI Chart
Responsible (the doers, execute the work)	Accountable (the owner, answers for the outcome)	Consulted *(the experts, provide input and feedback)*	Informed *(kept in the loop on progress)*
Project Team + Task Group	Project Team	Nevada ECAC + NDE Leadership + Partners not on the Task Group	PDG B-5 and Early Childhood Community Partners + Early Childhood Professionals + Families

Task 2: Refine the List of Activities to Sustain

In September 2025, PDG B-5 staff identified a list of activities to be sustained beyond December 30, 2025, and identified elements including who within the OELD would be responsible for the activity moving forward, key partners, and dissemination needs.

Following approval of the no-cost extension in December 2025, new activities were implemented through PDG B-5. Additionally, the OELD restructured, requiring review and refinement of the original list.

The Project Team will partner with the Task Group, or PDG B-5 staff at a minimum, to review the full list of PDG B-5 activities and indicate what is suitable to be sustained (whether the activity can be repeated and can be sustained) and what is desirable to sustain (activities having a positive impact that Nevada wants to sustain). Page 10 of the Minnesota Planning Guide provides questions Nevada may consider for determining suitability and desirability. Figure 2 provides an example of what this might look like.

Figure 2. Sample Nevada Activities Suitable and Desirable to Sustain

Figure 2: Sample Nevada Activities Suitable and Desirable to Sustain
Nevada PDG B-5 Task	Completed/No Longer Relevant	Desirable to Sustain (NDE Responsibility)	Desirable to Sustain (Partner Responsibility)
1.1 Needs Assessment Updates	✓
3.2 B-12 Family Engagement Framework and Toolkit		✓
4.3 Expand Early Childhood Support Network			✓
6.3 Supports for Children Experiencing Homelessness		✓

Task 3: Evaluate Feasibility of Sustaining Activities

Activities that are suitable and desirable to sustain may not be feasible to sustain. To determine the feasibility of Nevada’s activities, the Project Team and Task Group will identify the inputs and conditions or, as Minnesota describes them, the “levers” necessary to maintain PDG B-5 activities.

Example levers include:

Funding: Sustainability requires stable funding at the level needed to support a program or initiative. Funding may come from various sources, including federal, state, local, and regional governments and philanthropy.
Support for the initiative or effort: Vital support may come from multiple groups and individuals, including leaders, partners, coalitions, advocates, stakeholder groups, and the public.
Organization and governance: Where early childhood efforts reside and how they are run help determine goals, resources, alignment, coordination, authority, and accountability for high-quality results. Organization and governance may involve interagency cooperation, state and local partnerships, and public-private partnerships.
Management systems: Sustainability depends on the policies, processes, and procedures to carry out essential tasks and functions, including oversight, coordination, and operation of fiscal, procurement, personnel, and data systems.
Staff and expertise: Building and maintaining staff and expertise helps foster ongoing change and develop community and organizational support, ultimately contributing to sustainability efforts. Leaders and champions within programs, communities, and partner organizations play important roles. They should be flexible and resourceful and take the initiative to advance sustainability.
Program rules: Conflicting or limiting rules and statutes can hinder coordination and advancement among early childhood initiatives. Supportive and aligned rules and statutes at all levels of government create efficiencies in program implementation and coordination.
Adaptability to leadership changes and shifting priorities: Success involves monitoring and innovating in response to new directives and agendas, changing conditions, and emerging evidence about what works well to advance early childhood systems.

Levers will be finalized and applied to PDG B-5 Activities to evaluate feasibility. Given the limited timeline, Nevada is encouraged to use the Task Group to complete this activity, with input and feedback from the ECAC. (Request agenda item during June Executive Leadership ECAC Subcommittee and other relevant June subcommittees.) The evaluation of each activity by lever will be used to inform the next task, developing action plans. If relevant and approved by the ECAC, action plans and steps may be incorporated into the ECAC Strategic Plan workplan and key activities. (Request agenda item during July General ECAC to adopt relevant action plans as necessary.)

To evaluate each activity in the context of each lever, will will use the following guiding questions:

1. How important is this lever to the strategy? (use a pre-defined rating scale)
2. Is this lever able to be applied within the next 12 months?
3. How well-positioned is the activity/project in terms of this lever? (use a pre-defined rating scale)
4. What is already in place for this lever or what might work well for this lever?
5. What are the suggested approaches to sustain this project?
6. What challenges exist for this lever?

Nevada can use prior work on transition planning to inform some of the levers. For example, OELD has already identified staff who will assume ownership of NDE-sustained activities. In another example, the ECAC Policy and Finance Committee developed a funding matrix to identify financing sources and strategies for some activities. Finally, the ECAC strategic plan may address the support for the initiative and governance levers.

Key Decision: Through this process, the Project Team and Task Group may identify significant challenges for sustaining activities. The Project Team may choose not to develop action plans for these activities; however, it may be valuable to communicate these challenges to the ECAC and other partners to inform future advocacy and policy efforts.

7/15/26 Progress Update

The PDG B-5 Project Team and Task Group have concluded Tasks 1-3 and work is under way for Task 4.

More than 30 programs were evaluated for "feasibility to sustain." Unfortunately, action plans cannot be created for all. The following projects meet the analysis criteria to receive an action plan, indicating they are likely feasible within the next 12 months:

Nevada's Pathway to Universal Pre-Kindergarten
ECAC Infrastructure & Supports
Early Childhood Summit (Office of Comprehensive Services & Supports & Nevada Early Intervention Services)
First 5 Nevada & State Pre-K Common Application
Nevada Workforce Data Dashboard
State Pre-K in Family Child Care
Nevada COMPASS
ECAC Strategic Plan
Workforce Development (UNR Extension: Spiral Up, CDA, NR!PK PD)
Early Childhood Support Network
Revised Pre-K Standards Roll-out & Early Learning Guidelines
Early Learning Data & Reporting System
Birth to Grade 12 Family Engagement Framework

Action Plans will be completed by 7/31/26.

If you believe a project not listed above should receive an action plan, we will gladly share our template. Action Plans for Local ECACs and Nevada's professional associations are being supported on a case-by-case basis.

Many deliverables and projects that did not meet the analysis criteria fall into the formal Dissemination & Deliverables Distribution Plan. All PDG B-5 Deliverables will be disseminated in early August.

Task 4: Develop the Sustainability Plan

Due to timeline constraints, Nevada's plan will focus on completing Tasks 1-3 in order to develop or support the development of relevant action plans to ensure the continuation of activities beyond the end of the PDG B-5 budget period (June 30, 2026).

At a minimum, the Project Team and Task Group should develop template action plans that identify the activity, the individual(s) who will be accountable for the activity, the tasks they must complete, and due dates. Activities supporting knowledge transfer, communication, and ongoing data collection and evaluation should be considered in the action plans.

It is important that the individuals who will be responsible for the activity are part of the action planning process. If the individual has not previously been involved in the activity or PDG B-5, they should be paired with PDG B-5 staff to help develop the action plan.

The sustainability plan should be shared with NDE/OELD leadership as well as the Nevada ECAC.

Task 5: Implement and Monitor Sustainability Plan

Following the end of the PDG B-5 project period, the Nevada ECAC and NDE Leadership will be responsible for monitoring implementation, ensuring tasks are completed and the activities are maintained. It may be helpful to develop tools or metrics to support the ECAC and NDE’s tracking, including workplans or dashboards using their preferred project management software.

PDG B-5 funded staff will be available to support program closeout and sustainability implementation from July 1 through July 31, 2026. This period should be utilized by staff to complete action plan tasks, such as knowledge transfer activities, for example developing standard operating procedures or other documentation, archiving deliverables and project documents, communicating with partners and other stakeholders.

PDG B-5 Leadership will be available through October 2026 during the final reporting and closeout period to facilitate needs identified and related to the closeout period.

The PDG B-5 Evaluation Report (released in October 2026) will include recommendations regarding ongoing monitoring and evaluation of PDG B-5 activities, as applicable. The evaluation team can help NDE think about metrics and tools to support ongoing monitoring and evaluation.