The coronavirus pandemic has had an outsized impact on the field of early care and education (ECE) – underscoring its importance for an equitable economic recovery and the well-being of parents and children. According to a recent survey, child care enrollment is down 67%, adding crushing financial strain to businesses and families.
LIIF is leveraging decades of experience in providing capacity building to get immediate, critical support to small child care businesses, most of which are owned and operated by women of color and immigrants. Since April, LIIF has marshalled $23 million to provide grants, technical assistance and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds (with our partner, Community Reinvestment Fund) to nearly 400 family child care business owners. These funds will be contributed to essential expenses like rent, mortgage, payroll and purchasing cleaning and safety supplies – ultimately helping an estimated 700 providers to reopen their businesses and recover from the damage of the pandemic.
Investing in quality ECE is key to LIIF’s mission to build a more just and equitable future. Participation in quality child care programs significantly improves future educational and economic mobility outcomes for children, particularly children of color and those from lower income households. These investments also support opportunities for wealth building – both for parents able to go to work and for the business operators.
Despite great collective efforts, our nation’s early care and education care system is at risk without immediate and significant federal funding. LIIF and our partners continue to advocate for at least $50 billion in emergency funding to directly support ECE businesses in staying open and keeping families safe.
Thanks to our funders for their generous support:
City and County of San Francisco Give2SF Fund
Early Childhood Partners Fund in The New York Community Trust
Esther A. & Joseph Klingenstein Fund
First 5 Alameda County
Goldman Sachs Foundation
Greater Washington Community Foundation
Heising-Simons Foundation
Robin Hood
San Francisco Office of Early Care and Education
Silicon Valley Community Foundation
The JPB Foundation