LITTLE FALLS — In August, the Initiative Foundation was awarded $416,000 in funding from the Minnesota Department of Education and the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund to create a series of three grant cycles.
The application period for the second round is now open, closing 4 p.m. Dec. 31. Grants will be awarded in early January 2021.
The goal is to support early childhood programming that benefits children birth to age 8 who are adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including illness, economic displacement and the interruption of educational and/or development support.
Emphasis for the second round of grants will be placed on equity in support of underserved communities, including:
Areas of concentrated poverty,
Ethnic minorities and/or English-as-a-second-language, and
Disabled individuals and/or those in rural areas who lack access to basic early childhood educational services.
The Initiative Foundation seeks to support at least one grant in each of the 14 counties within its service area. However, the primary criteria for evaluating applications will be how many vulnerable children are receiving support per dollar, a news release stated. No applicant will receive funding in more than one area during any of the three planned grant cycles.
"The region was already experiencing a child care crisis before the COVID-19 pandemic emerged. Any inequities that were there pre-pandemic are only magnified now,” stated Don Hickman, Initiative Foundation vice president for community and workforce development, in the release. "Those children who are most vulnerable are the ones suffering. We want to make sure we get help where it's needed."
ADVERTISEMENT
The Foundation will issue one more series of grants in spring 2021. For questions or clarity, contact Don Hickman at dhickman@ifound.org . For background and eligibility details, visit the information page.
The first round of awarded grants can be found at ifound.org/covid-19/emergency-child-care-grantees .
