Groundwork is grateful to be on the newly appointed Ohio Early Childhood Advisory Council that met this week. Delivering and building upon the promises of Governor DeWine’s Opportunity for Ohio Kids Agenda, members were provided with a reflective update and celebration of Ohio’s FY 2020-2021 budget investments in young children and families. Leadership from the Governor’s Office of Children’s Initiatives and the early childhood cross-agency team shared their vision for implementing the incredible investments in critical interventions to improve outcomes for young children. Among all the great news and developments shared, we were thrilled to hear the updated numbers of children having access to quality rated child care programs through “Step Up to Quality.” At the end of July 2019, 71% of children served by publicly funded child care are accessing at least a 1-star rated program! Please share with us in celebrating the accelerated growth over the past year as a result of your persistent commitment to quality improvement alongside our state and local leaders! If you have any questions about the meeting, feel free to reach out to Lynanne Gutierrez, Policy Director & Legal Counsel.
Intern Insights: Comparing Early Education Around the World
A month ago when I started this internship, I had no idea what child care systems looked like in Ohio, let alone across the world. After I read about Ohio’s different forms of early childhood education, I started to read about what it looks like in other countries. As I’ve researched, I’ve found a wide variety of systems, some more comprehensive than others. But even as child care systems have varied, I’ve found that most countries share a fundamental understanding: that an investment in early childhood education and care systems benefits the country in a multitude ways.... Check out the full blog.
Encourage Congress to Increase Federal CCDBG Funding
Federal funds play a critical role in supporting early learning in Ohio--about 20% of Ohio's child care funding comes from the federal Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and Congress is currently considering an increase to that fund, which could significantly benefit Ohio's littlest learners. We encourage you to elevate the importance of federal investments in early learning with your US Representative (look up your representative here) and Senators Brown and Portman by sending a letter expressing your support for increased CCDBG funding. Simply download our letter template, fill in the highlighted fields, and drop it in the mail!
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