BEEP was founded in 1972 in collaboration with Children’s Hospital of Boston, as a research project called the Brookline Early Education Project.  The educators and researchers working on this project sought to identify the components of a high-quality early education program, and if attendance in preschool/pre-kindergarten had a long-term impact on students’ future success. This longitudinal study was funded by generous grants from the Carnegie Mellon and Robert Wood Johnson Foundations. Final results indicated attendance in a high-quality early childhood program had a significant positive impact on children’s future academic success, as well as on other life variables including being a registered voter! Furthermore, the research identified the following three characteristics as critical components of a high-quality early education program: 

2) emphasis on developing strong organization and problem solving skills,

3) the  presence of strong  partnerships with families.