Ten years ago, community leaders in Chattanooga and Hamilton County rallied around a shared premise: The long-term health of the local economy depended on whether children have real opportunities to succeed, from early childhood through adulthood.
That idea became Chattanooga 2.0, a nonprofit backbone organization created to coordinate efforts across education, workforce development, government and philanthropy. A decade later, the organization is no longer defining the problem but is measuring progress, scaling programs and confronting the structural gaps that still limit economic mobility for thousands of families.
From early childhood education and literacy to workforce pathways and college savings, Chattanooga 2.0 now operates as a central convener for what it calls a “cradle-to-career” system – aligning data, policy and practice around one long-term goal: a thriving, inclusive economy where social and economic mobility is achievable for all.
An impact report covering 2022 through 2025 reflects a period of rapid growth for the organization, alongside measurable gains in education and workforce outcomes – and a clearer picture of where challenges remain.
Four “Big Bets”
Chattanooga 2.0’s work is organized around four “Big Bets,” each aimed at strengthening a different segment of the county’s talent pipeline.
The first focuses on early childhood, with the goal of ensuring children enter kindergarten healthy, supported and ready to learn.
The second targets literacy, uniting families, schools and community partners around a countywide goal of 70% of students in grades three through five reading and writing on grade level by 2030.
The third centers on viable pathways to prosperity, building clear routes from education to thriving-wage careers.
The fourth, the Chattanooga Future Fund, helps families invest early in children’s postsecondary and career aspirations through savings accounts and financial education.
Together, the strategies are designed to address persistent gaps that affect educational outcomes, workforce readiness and long-term earnings – issues that increasingly shape Hamilton County’s economic competitiveness.
Early childhood
Early childhood education remains one of the county’s most pressing challenges.
Hamilton County has roughly 17,000 children under the age of six whose parents are in the workforce, but only about 11,000 licensed early learning seats. Because of staffing shortages and low wages – child care workers earn an average of $13.90 an hour – the number of usable seats drops closer to 8,700.
To address that gap, Chattanooga 2.0 has focused on workforce retention and family support. Since 2022, 84 child care teachers have received college tuition assistance, with 90% reporting increased job motivation. The organization also launched the Ready, Set, Kindergarten campaign, producing bilingual resources, podcasts and 31 skill-building videos to help families prepare children for school.
One of the most significant shifts has been the creation of a shared definition of kindergarten readiness. Before 2023, no common framework existed countywide. Chattanooga 2.0 worked with pediatric experts, educators, families and public officials to define readiness and develop materials that help caregivers build essential skills through everyday activities.
“I like being able to put something in the parents’ hands that helps them understand what’s required for their kid to go to kindergarten,” a Chattanooga PreK teacher says in the report. “It helps them realize that it will take more than just a preschool to do that – we will need their help also.”
Literacy gains
Literacy is the foundation of Chattanooga 2.0’s long-term education strategy, tied directly to workforce outcomes and lifetime earnings.
Adults who develop strong literacy skills early can earn up to $1 million more over their lifetimes than peers who do not, according to national data cited by the organization.
Through partnerships with Hamilton County Schools, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and community providers, Chattanooga 2.0 has expanded evidence-based literacy supports both in and out of school. That includes Literacy First Tutoring, a one-on-one program that will reach 750 kindergarten and first grade students across 14 schools in the 2025–2026 school year.
Family Reads, another initiative, has distributed approximately 6,500 books to families at four schools, with nine in 10 participating families reporting that their children read more at home. An Out-of-School Time K–2 Literacy Toolkit has also been adopted by afterschool providers, with all staff at five participating organizations reporting improved foundational literacy skills among students.
Countywide data shows progress, though the goal remains distant. Since 2018, literacy proficiency among third- through fifth grade students has increased by 6.6 percentage points, reaching 40.9%. The target is 70% by 2030.
Investing early
Launched in early 2025, the Chattanooga Future Fund represents a different approach to education and workforce readiness: helping families build financial assets alongside aspirations.
The program provides $100 college and career savings accounts to eligible kindergarten and middle school students, paired with financial literacy and career exploration workshops. Within its first 10 months, more than 4,000 students claimed their accounts, with over $70,000 in additional contributions from individuals and businesses directed to individual student funds.
For parents like Tiffany, whose middle school son and niece are enrolled, the program represents more than a bank account.
“I hope things will look completely different in 15 years, starting within my own community,” she says in the report. “Education about these things is so important. I now have my son and niece signed up, and I tell anyone I can to do the same.”
From classroom to career
While early childhood and literacy efforts aim to build long-term foundations, Chattanooga 2.0’s Viable Pathways to Prosperity initiative addresses immediate workforce needs.
The program develops industry-aligned training pathways that provide credentials, hands-on experience and wraparound support for young people entering high-demand fields. Current pathways include line working, welding, dental assisting and data analysis, with five active programs and plans to expand to 10 by 2027.
Since launching, 59 participants have earned skills and credentials, with a 100% placement rate maintained among line worker pathway graduates.
For Jewel Austin, a Hixson High School graduate, the dental assisting pathway offered a direct route into a career she’d considered since childhood. After completing the 12-week program and earning her Registered Dental Assistant certification, she accepted a job offer within a week of graduating and plans to continue her education in dental hygiene.
Her experience reflects a broader goal of the initiative: connecting education to real jobs that offer stability, growth and wages capable of supporting a family.
Measuring progress and exposing gaps
A defining feature of Chattanooga 2.0’s work is its emphasis on data.
Since 2022, the organization has developed four new dashboards tracking mental well-being, funding for children and youth, WIC enrollment and relief funding. The data has revealed both gains and vulnerabilities, including the extent to which staffing shortages constrain early childhood access.
Looking ahead to 2030, Chattanooga 2.0 and its partners have set communitywide targets tied to kindergarten readiness, literacy, college and career readiness, postsecondary attainment and thriving wages. Progress varies across measures. College and career-ready graduation rates have risen to 52.6%, up 15.4 percentage points since 2019, while the six-year college attainment rate remains flat at 35%.
The goal is 60%.
A turning point ahead
Chattanooga 2.0 leaders describe the past decade as proof that system-level change is possible – but not guaranteed.
More public and private investment is expected in the coming years, including national attention following the organization’s selection for a major initiative with The Wallace Foundation focused on strengthening out-of-school learning systems.
At the same time, challenges such as child care funding cuts and workforce shortages underscore the fragility of progress.
For Chattanooga 2.0, the next decade will test whether collaboration, data and long-term vision can continue to translate into durable opportunity – not just for individual students but for the economic future of Hamilton County itself.
Source: Chattanooga 2.0