How can we increase childcare accessibility, affordability, and quality in the Upper Valley so our families and workplaces can thrive?
Upper Valley employers and families both name access to high-quality, affordable childcare as one of the key barriers to prosperity in our region, especially for low- and moderate-income families.
Vital Communities’ Early Childhood Education Initiative seeks to address this issue by convening a steering committee and two workgroups of early childhood educators, advocates, parents, government officials, and employers to collaborate.
Early Childhood Education is one of the ongoing topics of focus for the Vital Communities Corporate Council.
Join the Initiative!
The goal of the Early Childhood Education Initiative is to increase the availability and affordability of high-quality early care and education in the Upper Valley.
Consider joining one of these workgroups investigating solutions for this complex issue.
Advocacy WorkgroupÂ
Goal: Advocate for policies and investments to support the increase of high-quality, accessible, and affordable early childhood education in the bi-state Upper Valley by growing a grassroots advocacy campaign, engaging a broad range of stakeholders, and identifying sustainable childcare business models to improve the economic vitality of the region.
Workforce and Program Models Workgroup
Goal: Identify, influence, and elevate strategies that promote bi-state sustainability and expansion of existing early education providers by supporting the retention and recruitment of early childhood educators and promoting fair compensation and benefits.
Goal: Identify, develop, and support strategies and models to reduce financial barriers such as operational costs, tax breaks, zoning requirements, etc. Connect early childhood educators to the networks providing business-related technical assistance and capital access to optimize their business operations, lower operation costs, and increase their capacity. Identify and support opportunities for cooperative procurement of services.
Early Childhood Education Steering Committee
- Amy Brooks, Early Care and Education Association of the Upper Valley
- Brooke Couch Freeland, Couch Family Foundation
- Dr. Andra Daunhauer, Equal Access to Broadband
- John Drew, Vital Communities
- Sara Kobylenski, Couch Family Foundation and member of the Vital Communities Corporate Council
- Shaun Mulholland, City of Lebanon NH
- Jenn Parker, Creative Kids Adventures
- Becky Parton, Dartmouth Trauma Interventions Research Center
- Dr. Joanne Roberts, Facilitator
- Emilie Tennenbaum, Let’s Grow Kids
Early Childhood Education Workgroup Meetings Calendar
Past ECE Meetings
Stay Informed!
Early Childhood Education News
The Week of the Young Child: Celebrating Early Childhood Educators
April 1 to 7, let early childhood educators know how much you appreciate what they do for our children and…
Early Childhood Education Initiative: A Progress Report
Even if you and your family don’t rely on early childhood education and childcare, you’re probably aware of the current…
November 4 Conference Offers Learning – and Healing – Through Place-Based Education
The news is full of reports of how hard the pandemic has been on schools, teachers, and students. One antidote…
Celebrate Our Childcare Heroes
In honor of the Week of the Young Child, April 2-8, communities all over the country are celebrating the Early…
Childcare In the Upper Valley: Challenges, Successes, and the Way Forward
Free and virtual –Â Register below to receive Zoom link Upper Valley employers and families both name access to high-quality,…
Early Childhood Education Resources
A summary of Grant & Scholarship opportunities available for individuals currently working in Early Childhood Education or interested in pursuing work in Early Childhood Education.
Early Childhood Education Staff
In August 2022, Joanne joined Vital Communities as a consultant for the Early Childhood Education Initiative. She is currently the…
Early Childhood Education Sponsors
