The first five Profiles in Care: What we're learning
Early Bird readers, hello again. Newcomers, welcome! If you were forwarded this email, you can sign up here to receive it every two weeks, and join our conversation on issues facing North Carolina’s young children and those who support them. If you’re already a subscriber, please help us reach more people by sharing this with your friends and co-workers interested in early childhood education.
One of our goals as EdNC’s early childhood team is to connect policy and people (both informing decision-makers about children and families’ needs, and letting you all know about policy decisions that affect your work and lives). Earlier this year, my early childhood teammate Katie Dukes launched a series called Profiles in Care to do just that.
We’ve got a round-up of the first five profiles in the series for you that highlights the policy issues these individuals have helped us better understand through sharing their experiences.
The first five profiles include stories from all types of folks from all types of places across the state: a child care director in Alamance County, a U.S. Coast Guard Commander and parent in Pasquotank County, a pediatrician in Durham, a Smart Start director in Dare County, and the director of a foundation that supports a Raleigh child care program that serves young children with special needs.
They all have different backgrounds and different reasons for caring about young children. But they all are impacted by early childhood policy, and their stories can help us grasp what communities need for young children and families to thrive — and the individual and collective costs when those needs are not met.
I hope you spend some time with the piece and share it. On top of outlining the issues we’re paying attention to, from teacher shortages due to low wages to military child care’s lessons for the state, you’ll also have access to five stories that are joys to read and five people who are joys to meet.
We also have a primer on the challenges and opportunities in early care and learning across the Fifth District, which is the region of the Federal Reserve Bank that includes North Carolina, from Sonya Ravindranath Waddell, an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. I’ve been trying to explain the broken business model of child care for five years. Waddell has the economic background to explain the root of the problem so clearly. Check it out.
I’m headed to western North Carolina this week for classroom visits. Back in Raleigh, legislators will return to session late in the week. We’ll be following along and keeping you in the loop. We’ll also have our latest analysis of child care closures since the end of pandemic-era compensation grants, and much more. Thank you for reading.
More from EdNC on early childhood
'Profiles in Care': Understanding early childhood policies through personal stories
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Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in “Econ Focus,” the economics magazine of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, and is republished here with permission. The Richmond Fed is the home of the Federal Reserve’s Fifth District, serving North Carolina, South...Perspective | It’s time for parents to use our outside voices to support child care and early learning
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One big budget bill and 181 executive orders into the Trump administration, one thing is clear for those of us checking our crystal balls ahead of the school year. There is a big difference between policy change aligned to winning...The big picture for little kids
Legislative Updates
Early childhood advocates organized a “Child Care Day of Action” on Aug. 12 to encourage phone calls to state legislators and social media posts to raise awareness on providers’ and families’ challenges.
“We can’t afford to keep losing anymore teachers, anymore providers,” said Greg Borom, director of the WNC Early Childhood Coalition, on an advocacy webinar on Aug. 21.
Advocates’ main priority this session was $220 million for a statewide subsidy floor. This “floor” would set a minimum amount that child care programs receive per child for participating in the child care subsidy program, which helps low-income working parents afford care. It was not included in the mini-budget passed in July. Neither was advocates’ ask for funding to help child care teachers afford child care for their own children.
“It’s not too late to continue to raise this issue,” Borom said on the call last week. “The day of action is passed, but let’s keep it going.”
News & Research
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Are 'COVID kindergartners' ready for school? - From NPR
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A meta-analysis of research studies affirms that mental distress in dads before and after the birth of a baby can affect child development. - From zero2eight
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Hundreds of groups push back on Trump denying lawful immigrants access to Head Start, other programs - From NBC News
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Taking on racial bias in early math lessons - From The Hechinger Report
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Why So Many Childcare Centers Are Closing - From Time
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Daycare being launched as incentive for Haywood school employees - From The Mountaineer
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Financial Relief for Early Educators to Access Higher Education - From NIEER
Taking flight! Opportunities to spread your wings
Grants for family child care providers - From The NC CCR&R Statewide Family Child Care Project
The statewide family child care project, housed at Southwestern Child Development Commission (SWCDC), is distributing grants up to $10,000 for start-up costs associated with opening new family child care homes or transitioning from a family child care home to a center in residence.
From SWCDC:
“Family Child Care (FCC) Innovative Grants provide funding to support creative and effective solutions to challenges faced by family child care providers and the families they serve. These grants focus on improving access to quality care, enhancing the financial stability of FCC businesses, and addressing specific needs of the community, such as serving infants and toddlers or children with special needs.”
SWCDC is hosting a webinar for interested applicants on Aug. 26 at 6 p.m. Applications are due no later than 11:59 a.m. on Sept. 12.
Family-friendly certifications for employers - From Family Forward NC
In May, Greensboro became the first city to hold a Family Forward NC Certification for “its wide-scale investment in policies that help working parents and support early childhood development.”
The certification, developed by the effort from the NC Early Childhood Foundation, went to 32 new employees in during the first half of 2025, mostly from the Triad area.
Go here to learn more about where to start in becoming a family-friendly workplace.
Stronger Together: Creating Connections For Early Childhood - From North Carolina Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Association
Aug. 25, 12:30-1:30 p.m.
From the organizer:
“Things are changing quickly at the federal and state level, creating fear and uncertainty for children, families, and those of us who support them. In response, NCIMHA has created Stronger Together: Creating Connections for Early Childhood as an open, monthly, virtual space co-facilitated by members of NCIMHA community and staff. We seek to provide a welcoming, nurturing space where you can connect with colleagues who are also supporting young children and families.”
