In the News
Pre-K 4 SA announces new partnership to expand child care options for military families
Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) and Pre-K 4 SA recently announced a new partnership to expand child care options for military families. Through the partnership, the city says JBSA and Pre-K 4 SA will work together to focus on expanding the network of Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood (MCCYN) providers to offer extended hours and weekend availability to meet the needs of military families. “By ensuring our service members’ children have priority access to high-quality early education, we’re not only investing in their future but also enhancing military readiness,” said JBSA Commander Brig. Gen. Russell D. Driggers.
In November 2020, 73 percent of San Antonio voters approved an eight-year renewal of a 2012 referendum to increase the local sales tax by one-eighth of a cent to fund Pre-K 4 SA, a voluntary, full-day pre-k program for four-year-old children from low and middle-income families. You can read more about it in our case study.
In search of funding for child care, 2 Colorado regions pursue special taxing districts
Colorado already has lots of special districts that levy taxes for things like fire protection, water sanitation, and libraries. Now, two regions are working to make this possible for early childhood programs. Special taxing districts for children’s services exist in Florida and Missouri and have been possible for five years in Colorado.
While cities and counties already had the ability to levy taxes for preschool or child care, special districts allow communities to take a regional approach to early childhood needs, which, depending on where families live and work, can quickly spill over the boundaries of a single jurisdiction. Click here to read the full story on how two regions are working to to help families find child care, provide sliding-scale child care subsidies, and help local providers improve quality.
How locally-funded child care benefits families: Parents say free day care ‘changed my life’
Parents say the free day care ‘changed my life,’ allowing workers at low-wage jobs to balance household budgets and start saving. Click here to read how several locally-funded child care programs are positively impacting families in New Orleans, Louisiana, Whatcom County, Washington, and Dallas, Texas.
The recent local initiatives are focused on younger children–infants and toddlers–more than ever before, said Diane Girouard, a senior state policy analyst with Child Care Aware, a nonprofit research and advocacy group. One reason: People saw the economic impact of a lack of child care during the pandemic, said Olivia Allen, a co-founder of the nonprofit Children’s Funding Project. “The value of child care and other parts of the care economy became abundantly clear to a lot of business leaders in a painful way,” Allen said.
Multnomah County, BuildUp Oregon launch Preschool for All facilities fund
In November 2020, Multnomah County, OR voters approved Measure 26-214, Preschool for All (PFA) to establish a tuition-free universal preschool program funded by a progressive income tax. This month, Preschool for All and Build Up Oregon announced the launch of a new Facilities Fund aimed at supporting early childhood education providers in Multnomah County. Build Up Oregon is a collaborative of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) who have joined forces to help build a more child-centered society by preserving, improving, and expanding child care facilities throughout the state of Oregon. The fund will help to expand this locally financed initiative by offering comprehensive support to early care and education providers participating in Preschool for All (PFA) who are looking to enhance the quality of care at existing facilities, expand to serve additional families, or open a new location. Providers will also receive expert guidance, support and technical assistance implementing facility improvement projects. Read more about this latest news here.
Pre-K 4 SA is expanding into Southeast San Antonio
Pre-K 4 SA recently revealed that they are expanding to build a new center to serve the Southeast side of San Antonio. Pre-K 4 SA is a voluntary, full-day pre-k program for four-year-old children from low and middle-income families funded by a sales tax increase that voted into place in 2012. The program currently serves over 2,000 students per year and is continuing to grow to serve more families around the city. By the 2025-26 school year, the Southeast side of San Antonio will have 350 new early education spots available at the new learning center currently under construction. Read more here.
Kentucky’s largest city is launching a five-year plan for universal preschool
Kentucky’s largest city, Louisville, recently announced plans to implement universal, free and optional preschool for its 3- and 4-year-old citizens.
“Imagine a future where every child in Louisville, regardless of their background, regardless of their circumstance, has access to high quality early childhood education,” he said. “Picture the potential, the possibilities that unfold when we invest in the youngest leaders and learners. This is not merely a dream. It’s a vision that we all in this room and outside this room can turn into a reality,” said Louisville Metro Council member Phillip Baker.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg announced that a new nonprofit called Thrive by 5 Louisville will work over the next five years with both public and private dollars to get children in the city better prepared for kindergarten by providing grants to providers and assistance to families. To kick this off, Greenberg said he will be asking Metro Council in his April budget proposal for funding and is also hopeful other funding sources will help make the vision a reality. Read more here.
Insight into Best Starts for Kids success in King County, WA
Reginald Harris at the Children’s Funding Project recently sat down with Dow Constantine, executive of King County, WA, for an interview about Best Starts for Kids. Since it’s launch in 2015, Best Starts fir Kids has supported more than 500,000 children, youth, and families and in 2021, King County voters renewed the levy that funds Best Starts for Kids with more than 62% of voters approving the effort for another six years. Click here to watch or read the full interview.
November 2023 Election Wins for Kids
The November 2023 elections provided several wins for kids on both state and local levels. The Children’s Funding Project released a recap of six funding measures that were on the ballots across the country and what the results mean for children and families. Read the recap here.
Pre K 4 SA Supports Reducing Child-Care Deserts in San Antonio
San Antonio city officials have identified a lack of child-care resources in the city’s south side where about 11,000 children currently reside. In an effort to combat this, Imagination Child Development Center, a new daycare center located in the South Side, opened last month. The Imagination Child Development Center is a member of the San Antonio Shared Services Alliance, powered by Pre-k 4 SA. This child care center means a better quality of life for local working parents who are thankful to have childcare just minutes away from where they live.
In November 2020, 73% of San Antonio voters approved an eight-year renewal of a 2012 referendum to increase the local sales tax by one-eighth of a cent to fund Pre-K 4 SA, a voluntary, full-day pre-k program for four-year-old children from low and middle-income families. Click here to read our case study about Pre K 4 SA, and here to read more about this recent news.
Michigan Millage Investments Connect Families to Much-Needed Services
In November 2018, Kent County, MI voters overwhelmingly approved the Ready by Five Early Childhood Millage proposal which today provides dedicated and sustainable funding for programs that improve the health, school readiness, and well-being of children under age five. The latest round of of funding from the millage which was approved in September and is now being dispersed to programs in the following areas:
- Parent Education and Support
- Early Learning Programs
- Healthy Development Programs
- Outreach and Navigation
“By providing invaluable resources to parents and families, we are not just preparing our little ones for kindergarten; we are nurturing a brighter future for our entire community,” says Kent County Administrator Al Vanderberg. Click here to read more about the positive impacts and support for this funding in Kent County.