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At Work At School

An Afton Partners Blog

All Posts

Applying Charter Authorizing Principles in the Early Childhood Field

By Abby McCartney and Carrie Stewart Introduction: Early Care and Education at a Crossroads Despite its importance for children’s development, the Early Care and Education (ECE) field has historically often been excluded from broader conversations about education quality and investment. This is changing: an increasing number of state and federal leaders are prioritizing public funding… Continued

Early Childhood Updates from Afton

There has been so much news on early childhood lately that we couldn’t resist adding our own information dump covering Afton’s recent efforts. Some exciting Afton-related early care and education (ECE) updates include: Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announced a proposal for a new unified early childhood state agency, which represents an important next step for children and families, resulting… Continued

Impact of the Proposed New Child Care Rule on Families and Providers

In July 2023, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program. CCDF is the primary federal grant that provides child care assistance to low-income working families with children under the age of 13. In addition to policy changes designed to… Continued

The State of Early Childhood Education Funding in America

A growing body of research on the benefits of early childhood education has put public funding for pre-kindergarten (“Pre-K”) in the spotlight across the country. With more total funding and more students served than ever before, it’s an exciting time for Pre-K education in America. Various mechanisms are used to fund Pre-K at the federal,… Continued