What's Happening?
Funds Granted to Secure YWCA Early Learning Center Program in Schenectady
The Schenectady Foundation has awarded a three-year grant in the amount of $150,000 to the YWCA’s NorthEastern New York (NENY) Early Learning Center (ELC), in support of their Child Care Partnership with SCAP (Schenectady Community Action Program). Funding will enable the Partnership to continue to provide Early Head Start (EHS) services to vulnerable children in the City of Schenectady, regardless of subsidy status.
YWCA NENY is dedicated to eliminating racism; empowering women; and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. The ELC has provided quality licensed childcare for women and their families since 1985 and is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The program voluntarily participates in the QUALITYstarsNY program.
The ELC program offers a developmentally appropriate curriculum, as well as an environment that focuses on the emotional, physical, and cognitive development of children from ages six weeks to three years. While educating youth through their high-quality early learning center, YWCA provides a safe place for young children to stay while their parents continue their education or work to support their families.
Once a child is deemed to be eligible for early learning services, YWCA will continue to provide those services until the child ages out of the program, regardless of financial situation. Shortly after the Child Care Partnership funding was established, the eligibility requirements for DSS subsidies were tightened, and many families lost access to those subsidies. YWCA holds true to its mission and continues to serve these families, despite the significant economic burden it places on the organization.
Working families living in poverty who lose a job, or exceed income thresholds, lose DSS childcare subsidies even if the family is unable to afford the full cost of care. Workforce Development funds which had assisted these families with their costs for childcare are no longer available. The Foundation's financial support allows YWCA NENY to cover lost revenues generated by the DSS subsidy reductions while providing continued services for currently enrolled, marginalized children and families. The YWCA updated application for the 2020 school year will include a higher level of reimbursement per child that will address the current gap in funding.
The Schenectady Foundation is proud to fulfill the YWCA's request for funding to ensure that children in this program will have a consistent, safe, and nurturing environment in which to spend their days, while their parents work or pursue the education necessary to improve the lives of their families. It also ensures an educational environment that is effective for learning and helps students to build a solid foundation for continued growth, education, and opportunity so that they can become productive members of the community.
