Early Education Matters

This year's stories for this important series builds on our work covering early education issues and innovation in Southeast Michigan. Focusing on what both parents and providers are experiencing, we dive into what's working (and what's not), and who is uncovering solutions. The series is made possible with funding from the Southeast Michigan Early Childhood Funders Collaborative.

Danielle Atkinson

Mothering Justice “Mamas’ Agenda” addresses childcare and early childhood education

A grassroots policy advocacy organization, Mothering Justice provides mothers of color in America with resources and tools to make equitable policy changes. One of its agenda items is early childhood education.

Robin Beasley is the director of Garden of Dreams Preschool inside First Congregational Church.
Tri-Share makes quality child care more affordable for working parents

MI Tri-Share is a first-of-its-kind cost-sharing funding model. The state, the employee, and their employer each chip in for one-third of the price of child care.

Teacher helping child at NEST Child Care and Parent Institute in Detroit
خارطة طريق “التعليم ما قبل الابتدائي للجميع” تتخذ منهجًا شاملًا لإطلاق برنامج “التعليم ما قبل الاب

في يناير 2023، أعلنت الحاكمة غريتشن ويتمر عن خطتها "التعليم ما قبل الابتدائي للجميع"، والتي ستوفر الوصول إلى التعليم ما قبل الابتدائي المجاني لجميع الأطفال البالغين من العمر أربع سنوات في ميشيغان بحلول عام 2027. في فبراير 2024، أصدرت دائرة التعليم مدى الحياة، التقدم، والإمكانيات في ميشيغان (MiLEAP) خطة الطريق مع توصيات حول كيف يمكن للولاية تحقيق هذا الهدف. شاركت مجموعة السياسات العادلة، وهي منظمة استشارية تعليمية في واشنطن العاصمة تركز على سياسات الرعاية والتعليم المبكرة، في تأليف خارطة الطريق.

Rogen poses for a picture at Garden of Dreams Preschool in Battle Creek
PreK for All a good way to disrupt the preschool-to-prison pipeline

Good preschool programs yield tremendous social and economic advantages such as higher high school graduation rates and reduced chances of criminal behavior. 

Child at NEST Child Care and Parent Institute in Detroit
Michigan makes the leap to improved educational opportunities with MiLEAP

MiLEAP consolidates the expansion of Pre-K for All, Sixty by 30, which would see 60% of working-age Michiganders with a postsecondary degree or certificate by 2030, and all education in between. 

Why preschoolers living with autism benefit from early education

 Early childhood education presents a golden opportunity to set up  children living with autism for academic success.

Most of Michigan’s counties having childcare deserts, areas that have three or more families competing for one available childcare slot.
Regional organizations help determine the childcare landscape within their own communities

The East-Central Michigan Child Care Coalition is working on expanding childcare organizations, serve more parents, and lower costs to families.   

Representatives from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, IFF, KConnect, First Steps Kent, and Grand Rapids Public Schools were among those sharing at the event.
Un informe destaca la necesidad de una atención y educación más completas y equitativas en la primer

En el condado de Kent, estas barreras están perfectamente ilustradas por un informe publicado recientemente, Split by More Than the Grand River: Cómo la Desigualdad en el Acceso al Cuidado Infantil Asequible Divide el Condado de Kent. 

Representatives from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, IFF, KConnect, First Steps Kent, and Grand Rapids Public Schools were among those sharing at the event.
Report highlights need for more and more equitable early childhood care and education

WKKF, IFF, KConnect, and First Steps Kent met with other stakeholders to discuss a report that found 20,500 additional slots are needed to meet the Kent County’s demand for childcare.

Right here in Michigan, Detroit’s pre-K programs are among the best.
تُعَدُّ برامج التعليم المبكر في ديترويت نماذج ممتازة لبرنامج الروضة للجميع

تُعَدُّ برامج التعليم المبكر في ديترويت نماذج ممتازة لبرنامج الروضة للجميع

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