Mission

The mission of the Children’s Education Alliance of Missouri (CEAM) is to improve Missouri’s K-12 education system by advancing education policies and innovations that ensure all families have the right to choose the education they determine is best for their children.

CEAM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports effective schools of all kinds and believes all Missouri students deserve access to a quality education, NOW. We support measures that will cultivate more quality education options by raising awareness and helping parents and others take action.

CEAM has become Missouri’s leading voice for education reform with an army of dedicated parent-advocates who put a face on policy change.

CEAM advocacy training empowers parents to be education policy advocates for their own children and all Missouri children. CEAM parents:

Tell their stories.
Testify before committees
Meet with their elected officials at home and at the capitol.
Are interviewed by the media.
Recruit other parents.
Engage on social media.
Write letters to the editor.
Take action on their own.
Help plan CEAM events and actions.

Since its inception as a group of volunteers and loaned staff in 2006, CEAM has grown into a highly-recognized advocacy organization leading the charge for school choice in the Missouri legislature. CEAM’s profile has been elevated since 2013 when the organization helped families in two unaccredited school districts take advantage of a law that allows families living in those districts to transfer their children to neighboring, higher-performing schools. To learn more about the history of CEAM, visit our History page.

Since 2013, CEAM has facilitated:

141,929 automated calls to Missouri parents, including “patch-through” calls to legislators.
66,537 doors knocked during canvassing.
49,465 live calls to parents and stakeholders.
11,011 people signed up for the CEAM newsletter.
6,679 signers to the“Stand with CEAM” pledge.
804 parents trained through CEAM.
223 highly-engaged parents taking action.
205 advocate testimonies on file.
176 media stories that featured CEAM or our parents.
104 parents – legislator meetings at the capitol.
3,597 Facebook followers, 1,655 Twitter followers

Engagement:

CEAM turns the spotlight onto community needs in education and seeks to create powerful partnerships with parents, business and civic leaders, students and educators. CEAM finds and recruits families and members of the community to change the rules of the game through valuable training focused on policy change and communication.

Awareness:

Each year CEAM works to heighten awareness about policies impacting education through outreach efforts. This includes community events, events focused on changemakers, and outreach in communities impacted by legislation. Sign our pledge or volunteer for an upcoming event!

Action:

CEAM connects quality education advocates across the state because implementing great ideas requires the right policy landscape. We help our advocates share their voices in their community and at the state capitol. We help parents testify before key legislative committees and make it easy for all of our advocates to share their passion for education reform through our Phone2Action network.

ceam