From our partners at Child Care Services Association:
The CCSA COVID-19 Child Care Relief Fund is now open for a second round of grant funding to support North Carolina child care programs. Child Care Services Association’s (CCSA) relief fund is the only one of its kind specifically designated for supporting North Carolina child care programs struggling to meet the needs of essential workers and families returning to work. The funding will help programs meet their needs during this challenging time.
Experts have been warning for months that this pandemic might cause an unprecedented child care crisis in the United States. Many child care programs in North Carolina are struggling during this pandemic due to a shift in enrollment numbers and a decline in funding. Increased funding and support for early childhood educators is significant because if families can’t go back to work due to the lack of available child care, the economy can’t recover.
In its first round of funding, more than 1,000 child care programs applied for the CCSA COVID-19 Relief Fund and more than 700 eligible programs received funding. In Phase II, CCSA will provide funding to a small number of licensed child care centers and family child care homes through an RFA process. Providers will submit an application to support their projects and needs related to COVID-19. Grants will range from $1,000 to $5,000, depending on the magnitude of the expressed needs and the number of qualified applicants awarded. Programs that applied in Phase I may apply for Phase II.
“As we saw during the state shutdown, child care is an essential service much like roads and bridges. We all depend on parents with young children who are hospital workers, grocery store workers, sanitation workers, and other essential workers whether or not we have a child. And, therefore, we all depend on child care, which is clearer now, given our experience with COVID-19,” said Marsha Basloe, president of CCSA. “The CCSA COVID-19 Relief Fund is an opportunity for us to support child care programs with grants to be able to continue serving our state’s youngest children in a safe and nurturing environment.”
CCSA has always played a role in helping child care programs provide the highest quality early learning experience for our state’s youngest children. Learn more about the CCSA COVID-19 Relief Fund Phase II.
The CCSA COVID-19 Relief Fund is funded by the generosity of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation, the PNC Foundation, ChildTrust Foundation and Truist Charitable Fund as well as the many CCSA donors who contributed to the relief fund. Make a contribution today.
Child Care Services Association
Founded in 1974, the mission of Child Care Services Association (CCSA) is to ensure affordable, accessible, high-quality child care for all young children and their families. Using a holistic approach, CCSA supports children and families, helps child care professionals improve the quality of early education children receive and ensures all families can afford and access the high-quality early care and education that is so important for a child’s early development. Through its Meal Services Program, CCSA also provides nutritious meals to children at child care centers, where they may eat 50-100 percent of their meals. Our T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood®, Child Care WAGE$® and Infant-Toddler Educator AWARD$® programs give child care professionals the means to obtain an education and supplement their salary based on that education. CCSA also licenses T.E.A.C.H. and WAGE$ across the U.S. and conducts early childhood systems research and policy development statewide and nationally. For more information, visit www.childcareservices.org.