About Us

Mission Statement

Our mission is to amplify the importance of birth to three development. We accomplish this through the power of music, technology, and collaboration.

Founder & President Sam Beard

A Legacy of Service – Building a Better Future for All

Sam Beard is a social entrepreneur and public servant. Throughout his life, he has consistently dedicated himself to making a meaningful difference in the world. Over the past half-century, he has created and chaired public service programs for eight U.S. Presidents, demonstrating a sustained commitment to civic engagement and national service.

To further this mission, Sam formed GIFT CONNECT, which serves as a crucial bridge between innovators, policymakers, educators, and the general public. Its goal is to advance one of the most powerful policy imperatives for reversing poverty: focusing on child development from Birth to Three.

In addition to his executive leadership, Sam has served on the board of directors of numerous organizations. Earlier in his career, he worked with U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy in Bedford-Stuyvesant, a low-income community in Brooklyn, New York. There, he concentrated on social justice issues such as poverty and discrimination, laying the foundation for his lifelong advocacy.

Later, working with Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, Beard led the NDC to collaborate with mayors in 100 cities and governors in 30 states, training 100,000 economic development professionals and creating 1,000 local development corporations. Furthermore, he helped break through the Baltimore financial system, demonstrating how financial institutions could partner with government programs to channel capital into low-income communities.

Subsequently, Beard co-founded the Jefferson Awards with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Robert Taft Jr. The Jefferson Awards, now known as Multiplying Good, recognize and celebrate individuals and organizations that are making a meaningful impact in their communities and around the world.

Learn more about Sam’s historic impact on America

Gift Connect - We exist to amplify the importance of birth to three development.

Vision

Most developed countries spend $10,000/child on ECD while the U.S. only spends $500/child.

Moreover, according to UNICEF, only 1% of education funding in the developing world goes to early childhood development. As a result, we have focused too heavily on addressing the symptoms of poverty rather than tackling its root cause — the chronic underinvestment in developmental resources for children from birth to age three. This is a critical period when most cognitive functions are formed, laying the blueprint for lifelong well-being.

Unfortunately, far too few people, leaders, and organizations are aware of the revolutionary science behind early development, the power of transformational behavior change practices, and their direct link to breaking the cycle of poverty.

But there is hope. Together, we can change that.

Join us in making “Birth to Three” a national policy imperative — one that has the power to transform the lives of children and strengthen the overall health and future of our society.