Early Childhood Leaders Convene Around Financing Options to Expand Programs

North Carolina Chambers of Commerce leaders, county commissioners, early learning program providers, private foundations, community organizations, local school board members, Smart Start local partnerships and business leaders recently spent a day together discussing how to make greater local investments in young children. Thirty leaders from Buncombe, Durham and Forsyth counties learned about local financing options to expand early learning programs in their communities.

The training was led by the North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation (NCECF) and the NC Budget and Tax Center (BTC). The Forum’s Elizabeth Gaines also presented local examples and lessons learned from around the country. The training built on NCECF’s earlier publication Local Funding for Early Learning: A Community Toolkit. The toolkit provides information and steps for considering a local financing initiative – detailing strategies, opportunities and challenges, getting to action and results. One workshop participant suggested, “If your community is considering locally expanding early care and education services, this toolkit and workshop are essential to your planning.” More about the North Carolina financing workshop can be found here.