This is a groundbreaking policy investment in our kids and family success. I’m over the moon as I’ve been advocating for years for this wishlist and the hard work has paid off!
Connecticut is investing in early childhood education with the assistance of $210 million from the federal funding the state has received to date to support pandemic recovery efforts.
The plan includes:
- Expanding access: A two-year, $50 million investment to pay for child care through Connecticut’s Care 4 Kids program for parents enrolled in higher education and approved workforce training programs.
- Supporting child care workers: A total of $120 million will be used for operational stabilization grants for struggling child care businesses that have been hit hard by the impact of the pandemic.
- Investing in quality: The plan invests $26 million over two years in high-quality child care programs that will pay substantially higher market rates to programs that are accredited by the NAEYC and the National Association for Family Child Care. An additional $6 million will provide support and coaching to child care programs working to secure accreditation and related fees.
In addition, Governor Lamont recently dedicated $8 million to pay Care 4 Kids family fees for new and existing families who receive child care subsidies beginning April 1, 2021, until September 30, 2021. Currently, approximately 15,000 Connecticut families receive child care subsidies. All of these families will have the parent share of the payment waived.
The Lamont administration has also prioritized child care programs and child care workers through the Governor’s Workforce Council and the Governor’s Council on Women and Girls. Those groups, together with the Office of Early Childhood, are collaborating to study the cost of providing quality child care, to encourage workforce development and adequate compensation by aligning credentials with higher wages, and to engage the private sector.
The councils have early commitments from Boehringer Ingelheim, Electric Boat, LEGO Systems Inc., and Indra Nooyi, former chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, to help spearhead the private sector engagement portion of their work.
And then there’s the work Rosa DeLauro has done to lift our children out of poverty. Federal and state tax credits. The future is bright!