Groundwork Ohio’s Post

⏰ The clock is ticking for federal early childhood programs. Without timely action from Congress, programs like child care, Head Start, WIC, and others that support young children and families across Ohio will suffer. Yearly funding must be renewed by the end of September, but Congress has often missed this deadline. Failing to pass the FY2025 appropriations bill quickly and without retaining the Senate’s proposed increases will hurt these programs. Early Childhood Education must be prioritized to ensure families have access to the services they need. This issue will likely not be resolved until after the November elections, but it is critical to urge Congress to act now. 👉 Use your BIG VOICE to ask Congress for BIG INVESTMENTS that will protect, prioritize, and expand early childhood programs. https://bit.ly/47TfsFK #EarlyChildhoodEducation #ChildCareCrisis #OhioFamilies #BIGVOICE #BIGInvestments

Many families face considerable barriers to accessing child care and early education (CCEE) that is affordable and meets their families’ needs. In a new report prepared for OPRE, Child Trends' Patti Banghart Gottesman, Ashley Hirilall, Gabriella Guerra, Katherine Paschall, and Dana Thomson identify actionable steps that state and territory child care administrators, local CCEE leaders, and researchers can take to advance measurement of equitable CCEE access by centering families’ child care needs and preferences. https://lnkd.in/eXWAn5vk

In 2024, states have made significant strides in child care policy, building on the previous year’s legislative momentum. Child Care Aware of America's latest analysis, "State Session Round-Up: Summer 2024," provides a clear overview of this year's key legislative developments. Some highlights include: 🔹 Continued support through stabilization grants and wage boosts for providers 🔹 New requirements from the 2024 CCDF Final Rule 🔹 Increased state funding and improved subsidy reimbursement 🔹 Expanded subsidy eligibility and innovative cost-sharing models 🔹 Boosted funding for mixed-delivery preschool programs You can find the full report here: https://lnkd.in/gBCNRW7t

This is the legislative session to work on child care, says Prichard Committee President/CEO Brigitte Blom, and the Horizons Act is a huge first step toward addressing gaps in early child care and education services in Kentucky. Read more about how the Horizon Act would start to address lack of access to child care and low wages for early education professionals in a story by the Kentucky Lantern, out today. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gqFJrpkt #HorizonsAct #KYGA24 #EarlyChildhoodEducation

The Massachusetts Senate on Thursday passed An Act ensuring affordability, readiness, and learning for our youth and driving economic development (The Early Ed Act – S.2697) to increase the availability and affordability of early education and child-care for families. Find out more here about the policy: https://okt.to/tYqzMA #EarlyEducation #SenateAction #EducationReform

Our partners at Iowa Health and Human Services recently presented at the Senate Finance Committee hearing on leveraging federal investments in early learning and child care to support families and providers. Experts emphasized the role of affordable, high-quality child care in workforce participation and economic growth. Discussions highlighted bipartisan support for federal solutions to improve access and affordability. Check out this summary of the hearing and learn how Iowa is using data to drive decision-making on child care to help families and children! https://lnkd.in/guTgSdaF

"Meanwhile, the burden created by our collective failure to build a truly supportive and community-nurturing child care system will grow heavier. And that is how and why pillars crumble." The crumbling childcare system in New Hampshire is not just a crisis for parents—it’s a crisis for our entire community. Without a robust childcare system: 1. Workforce productivity suffers: Parents, especially mothers, are forced to leave the workforce or reduce hours, creating talent shortages across industries. 2. Economic stability falters: Businesses lose valuable employees, and communities lose the economic contributions of working parents. 3. Future generations are at risk: High-quality early education is foundational for children’s development, impacting their lifelong ability to succeed and contribute to society. Strong childcare systems are the pillars of thriving economies and healthy communities, and when they crumble, so do the structures that hold us together. Parents, employers, and community leaders alike need to advocate for policies and investments that prioritize childcare. When families thrive, communities flourish, and together, we can strengthen the future of New Hampshire.

Iowa's total employment has declined while national employment increased over the past two years. Access to affordable, quality child care is a short-term need, but long-term considerations require action now. Link (behind paywall): https://lnkd.in/gDtNKRuA

This may not be where the US is at right now, politically, but is nonetheless a fact: a comprehensive, universal, effective young child care system would require about $150 billion a year in public funding. That's about 18% of current defense spending. Another fact is that there is copious, high-quality evidence about the enormous return on investment of support for early childhood development. Universal pre-K is just one of the elements in that investment, which should also include support for parents and other care-givers, including stay-at-home parents and grandparents; as well as improvements to the environment to make it less toxic, and generally more child-friendly.

All this week we will be highlighting how new federal rules will improve help improve practices in Maine's own Child Care Affordability Program which helps pay child care costs for qualified families. Today, we are sharing about how new rules: MAKES FAMILY ENROLLMENT EASIER AND FASTER Child care is essential for parents to work, go to school, or get training, but lengthy enrollment processes can disrupt parents’ plans and lead to missed opportunities. The final rule: • Encourages Faster Eligibility: Encourages State and Territory enrollment policies to consider a child presumptively eligible for subsidy prior to full documentation and verification. • Clarifies Eligibility for Additional Siblings: Clarifies that the minimum 12-month eligibility requirement applies when children are newly added to families already participating in the subsidy program and encourages Lead Agencies to align eligibility periods to the new child’s eligibility period. Allowing re-determinations to occur at the same time limits burden on the family and the Lead Agency. • Simplifies Verification: Encourages States and Territories to use a family’s enrollment in other public benefits program or documents or verification used for other benefit programs to verify eligibility for CCDF. • Minimizes Disruptions to Families: Requires States and Territories to implement eligibility policies and procedures that minimize disruptions to parent employment, education, or training opportunities and encourages online applications. https://lnkd.in/e-FgbETU