Rhode Island Daycare and Child Care Grants
It may seem like just a regular business, but a child care center is also an important service for the welfare of the community. People who have the personality or those who are keen with handling kids have the guts to handle a child care. But, for the chosen few entrepreneurs, it’s never easy to locate the funding necessary to operate a child care service. Obtaining the funds for a business normally begins with the cash on hand which includes pensions, savings, and long term funds like college or retirement funds. Extra resource of finances may even come from family and close friends, as well as from investors who have the passion for taking care of children. However, most of the time, the child care entrepreneur has to enter the bank and file for a probable startup loan.
Aside from those stated above, further sources of funds will be grants coming from the government—either federal or state grants that are particular to prominent child care services. Another good thing with regards to these child care grants is that you may apply for them and be provided with enough money, given the kinds of funding and the location of your day care center. The process for acquiring these grants is not that different from imminent investors for your small business. This permits the child care owner to obtain the much needed extra funding to operate and maintain a child care center.
One of the important documents to be submitted to get a hold of these free funds is a proposal. It states the service of the child care, status of the community, the requirements for the running and the need for a child care within the area. Moreover, the child care owner can request help from the local office of Child and Family Services in terms of availing grants.
Different Sources of Grants
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Federal
Federal grants are funded by the different agencies of the federal government. Typically, grants from a federal agency are funneled down to the communities through state agencies.
U.S. Department of Agriculture – It has two agencies with start-up/expansion funding programs:
The Rural Housing Service (RHS) has facility funding available for non-profits or local governments that support child care facilities. (http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rhs/index.html)
The Rural Business Cooperative Service has guaranteed loan programs for small business development available for profit child care programs. For eligibility or to apply for any of their programs, contact the state or local Rural Development Office, http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/recd.map.html
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) – The agency has funding programs that support child care services. The Child Care Bureau has several funding programs for child care facilities. http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ccb/
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – It supports child care facilities near or within public housing, EZ/EC’s, or low-income areas through facility construction using block grants, programs, and networks. To determine eligibility or to apply for any of their programs, contact the state HUD office at http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/states
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) – It provides small businesses financing options, technical assistance, and child care resource information. Check with your local SBA offices at http://www.sba.gov/localresources/index.html
U.S. General Services Administration – It has programs that allow the donation of surplus federal personal property to state and local public agencies and qualifying nonprofits, which include child care centers. Please contact http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_OVERVIEW&contentId=10092&noc=T
There are other federal programs that support child care such as:
The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) provide child care vouchers to subsidize the cost of care for low-income families as well as funds for state child care quality improvement initiatives. Nearly half of all children receiving CCDF subsidies are between the ages of five and 12. States are required to utilize at least 4 percent of their CCDF funds on quality activities and may also use discretionary funds earmarked by Congress for school-age care quality improvements and/or resource and referral activities. States may choose to use these funds to support initiatives to improve the quality and availability of school-age care, such as training programs or capacity-building grants for afterschool providers.
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) funds, which provide financial support for low-income families, may also be used to support afterschool programs in ways consistent with one or more of the four purposes of the TANF program. States may either directly spend TANF funds on afterschool programs and initiatives, or states can transfer up to 30 percent of their federal TANF allocation to the CCDF. TANF funds transferred to CCDF are subject to all of the CCDF rules and requirements, and can be used to expand out-of-school time capacity-building and quality-enhancement efforts. Direct TANF spending can provide states with additional flexibility when it comes to afterschool care. For example, funds can support services for older youth and can support programs as well as individual subsidies for children.
The 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21CCLC) is the only federal funding source that exclusively supports afterschool programs. The purpose of 21CCLC is to support community learning centers that provide students with a broad array of academic enrichment services, including tutoring, homework help, and community service, as well as music, arts, sports, and cultural activities. When the program first began in 1998, the U.S. Department of Education made competitive awards directly to school districts. However, following the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002, 21CCLC was converted into a state formula grant program. As a result, the Department of Education awards grants to State Education Agencies (SEAs), which then manage statewide competitions to grant funds to eligible organizations.
Federal Food and Nutrition Programs may support snacks or meals for afterschool program participants. After school programs may be able to receive reimbursements from one of four different food and nutrition programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture: the National School Lunch Program: Afternoon Snacks, the Child and Adults Care Food Program, the Summer Food Service Program and the School Breakfast Program. Reimbursement from these programs can be used to free up funds already spent on meals and snacks to support other program components.
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State
State agencies fund child care assistance under Family Child Care and Development Grants. Application for the child care grants and health grants can be made through www.governmentgrants.us.
In addition to this government agency of the state, funding sources could be obtained from the following sources:
Office for Diverse Learners
Rhode Island has a long and proud history of ensuring that students with exceptionalities receive support and intervention to achieve high expectations and exit public education as productive citizens, life-long learners, and contributing members of the workforce.
The Office for Diverse learners is responsible for advancing the education of:
- Children and youth with Disabilities who require Special Education
- Children and youth who are English Language Learners or Limited English Proficient/Non-English Speaking
- Children and youth who are Disadvantaged and/or Participate in Title I, who are Experiencing Homelessness, and/or who are Neglected, Delinquent or At-Risk.
- Children who participate in Early Childhood Education and/or Early Childhood Special Education programs
- Children and youth who are Learning Beyond Grade Level
The goal of the Office for Diverse Learners is to ensure that children with diverse learning needs are provided equal access to a public education and that schools develop effective strategies for meeting the needs of these unique learners.
http://www.ride.ri.gov/Special_Populations/Contacts/Default.aspx
Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
The term Autism Spectrum Disorders covers a range of disabilities classified under the category of Pervasive Developmental Disorders or P.D.D. The current term of ASD describes a life long disability, which affects the way the brain regulates what an individual sees, hears and experiences. The individual with ASD often has difficulty with social skills, communication, play and leisure skills, adaptive skills and with processing sensory information.
Each student with ASD presents a unique set of needs that challenges the educational/health and social services systems to respond to those needs with individual service/treatment plans. The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), Office of Special Populations contracts with the Rhode Island Technical Assistance Project (RITAP) at Rhode Island College to support the ASD Support Center.
ASD Support Center provides:
- Professional Development & Technical Assistance
- Resources
- Best Practice Guidelines
- Demonstration Classrooms
- Data Systems
- Comprehensive Planning
Additional Information
Sue Constable
RIDE Office of Special Needs
255 Westminster Street
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 222-8984
Fax: (401) 222-6030
Email: Susan.Constable@ride.ri.govOffice of Special Populations
Rhode Island Vision Education and Services Program (RIVESP)
The Rhode Island Vision Education and Services Program at the Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities at Rhode Island College, supported by the Rhode Island Department of Education, provides specialized teaching and consultation services to children who are legally blind or visually impaired, their families, and educational staff. (A visual impairment is defined as visual acuity of 20/70 or less in the better eye (with correction) or a visual field of 20 degrees or less.) Direct and consultative services are provided by state certified Teachers of Children with Visual Impairments and Orientation and Mobility Specialists using an itinerant model. The array of services available encompasses educational, social, recreational, and vocational skills needed for successful integration.
For further information contact:
Katrena Traut-Savino, Program Coordinator
Sherlock Center on Disabilities
600 Mt. Pleasant Avenue
Providence, RI 02908
Telephone (401) 456-8910
Email: ksavino@ric.edu
www.sherlockcenter.orgPhyllis Meloro
RI Department of Education, Office of Special Populations
Telephone (401) 222-4693Email Phyllis.Meloro@ride.ri.gov
Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing
Rhode Island Auditory-Oral ProgramThe Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program offers an educational option for eligible children who are deaf or hard of hearing to learn to use listening and talking as their primary way of communicating and learning. This statewide program is available to those children who require a period of intensive auditory-oral language development before joining their hearing peers in general early childhood or elementary classroom settings. Parents of enrolled children are those who have chosen listening and speaking as their child’s communication method and have pursued technology such as cochlear implants or hearing aids for their child.
Created in response to the changing needs of children and families, the Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program opened in April 2005. This educational option was developed by an extended team of experts in the field of oral deaf education.
Parents are Partners
Staff partnership with families respects each family’s cultural values and social context. Parents are a central part of the teaching team. Home visits and parent participation in individual intervention sessions at school are important components of the program. The commitment of parents and program staff to working as a team ensures that children have full opportunity to integrate listening skills and spoken communication into their daily life at school and at home.
For further information contact:
MaryJane Johnson
Telephone (401)222-4013 ext. 1
Email stumpjohn@aol.comEarly Childhood Education
Early Childhood Special Education is a state and federally mandated program for three, four, and five year old children with disabilities, who are not old enough for kindergarten. These laws are intended to ensure that all young children who require special education programs and/or services are provided a free and appropriate public education in accordance with their individual needs.
The educational needs of these children (because of delay or disability in the areas of cognitive, communicative, social/emotional and/or adaptive functioning) are not able to be met in their natural environment without special education and related services.
This group includes preschool children who are delayed or whose development is atypical and those who have autism, hearing loss, health impairments, visual impairments, or traumatic brain-injury. Preschool children with disabilities who meet these eligibility criteria may receive services upon reaching their third birthday.
Every school district or special education collaborative provides early childhood special education services and currently approximately 3,000 (2008 data) 3-5 year olds receive individualized special education preschool services. Services are provided though school-based programs across a continuum of educational environments. The vast majority of children receive special education services in either early childhood or integrated early childhood environments with their typically developing peers. Some children’s needs may require placement in separate classrooms. Program placement and services are guided by the needs of the child.
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Private
Private foundations that are based or operating in the State of Rhode Island, as well as those operating nationwide, can also be tapped as source of funding for the establishment and operation of child care business, support for parents and families to avail of child care services, and the training of professionals in the field of child care. Some of these foundations are the following:
Bank of America Foundation
The Bank of America Foundation operates with one of the largest philanthropic budgets of any financial institution in the United States. In 2001 it contributed more than $85 million in cash to nonprofit organizations across the country. It concentrates funding on pre-K through grade 12 educations and supports programs in early childhood development, economic and financial education, and teacher development. Community revitalization is another focus for funding nonprofit organizations.
Contact Information:
http://www.bankofamerica.com/foundation/index.cfm?template=overview&statecheck=CACharles Stewart Mott Foundation
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation is a private philanthropy based in Flint, Michigan. Through four programs, it makes grants in the United States and selected regions internationally. In 1997 the foundation and the U.S. Department of Education entered a multi-year partnership in support of 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC). The foundation helped support the Urban Institute’s Assessing the New Federalism project.
Contact Information:
http://www.mott.org/about.aspxRockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF)
RBF is dedicated to promoting the well-being of all people in the transition to global interdependence. One of the goals of the fund’s Education Program is to promote universal, quality education and care for pre-K children by using a comprehensive approach to their development, including concerns for health, safety, and readiness to learn. Strategies include supporting development of public policies that promote universal access to early childhood programs, and advancing the professional development of early educators.
Contact Information:
http://www.rbf.orgBaystate Charitable Foundation
The mission of the Baystate Charitable Foundation, established in 1999, is to raise money through various events to support local New England area charities. Two of the major charities that Baystate Financial supports are the DCF Kids Fund and Friends of the Children-
http://www.baystatefinancial.com/section8.cfm
200 Clarendon Street, 19th Floor
Boston, MA 02116Phone: 617-585-4500
Fax: 617-369-9040Jessie B. Cox Trust
The Jessie B. Cox Trust is dedicated to improving the environment and the quality of life for people living in New England. To achieve its goals, the Trust pursues initiatives in three key fields of interest: education, environment, and health. For education, there is a special interest in promoting early learning and quality out-of-school time. Within the field of environment, the Trust focuses on preservation of fresh and marine waters through natural habitat conservation.
In the area of health, the Trust emphasizes improving access to health care. Geographical areas f interest is New England – ME, RI, MA, NH, VT, CT.
Contact Information:
For information regarding the grants process please contact the following staff:
Kirstie David, Program Manager
617-391-3081
kdavid@gmafoundations.comPhil Hall, Administrator
617-391-3097
phall@gmafoundations.comJessie B. Cox Trust
c/o GMA Foundations
77 Summer Street, 8th Floor
Boston, MA 02110-1004
617-426-7080General mailbox for information and receipt of concept applications:
jbcoxtrust@gmafoundations.comJohn D. & Katherine A. Johnston Foundation
The John D. & Katherine A. Johnston Foundation was established in 1928 to support charitable organizations that work to improve the lives of physically disabled children and adults. Special consideration is given to organizations that serve low-income individuals. Preference is given to charitable organizations that serve the people of Newport, Rhode Island.
Contact Information:
http://www.bankofamerica.com/philanthropic/foundation.action?fnId=65The National Grid Foundation was created to enhance the quality of life in areas where we provide services. Our ongoing challenge is to create opportunities for solutions to educational and environmental issues. Our Foundation philosophy is based on the principle that giving people the tools to build hope is an essential ingredient in the development of individuals, families and communities. The National Grid Foundation endeavors to improve the quality of life within our grant making area by supporting educational opportunities that assist people of all ages advance their opportunities for self sufficiency. Our educational priorities include: Classroom based education for K-12 students; Innovative Scholarship and University partnerships that support and advance underserved members of our community; Skills training that helps people of all ages to lead more productive lives. The National Grid Foundation also takes great pride with respect to our commitment to the environment, and we make grants to organizations that share our fervor for environmental stewardship. Our more than 17,000 full time U.S. employees provide gas and electric service to more than 7 million customers in the New York Metropolitan area, upstate New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. National Grid also generates electricity for customers located in New York City and Long Island.
Contact Information:
http://www2.nationalgridus.com/corpinfo/community/foundation_all.jsp
Rhode Island: 1-800-640-1595The Ocean State Charities Trust assists agencies and organizations within the State of Rhode Island to enhance the quality of life for all Rhode Islanders. Grantees must operate to enhance the quality of life of Rhode Islanders, promote social welfare in the state, or assist the people of Rhode Island such as in the areas of housing, health, education, or similar activities. The grant-making policies of the Trust specify that grantees must be qualified under Section 501(c)(3) as a public charity, be incorporated in Rhode Island, be in operation for two consecutive years before applying, and follow detailed application and review process. The Trust considers applications for grants on a semi-annual basis, generally in May and November of each year.
Contact Us
http://www.osct.org/Olivia’s Organics Charitable Foundation – New England, NY, NJ, PA
The Olivia’s Organics Charitable Foundation was established in early 2006 as a way to invest in the lives of children. The Foundation seeks to give direct-service grants to organizations that work with children by providing services that have an immediate and tangible impact on their well-being. The foundation does not accept unsolicited grants, but instead chooses organizations with which it would like to partner for each quarter of the fiscal year. Unsolicited grant applications to the Olivia’s Organics Charitable Foundation are not accepted. Please do not send a general grant application request form to the organization. If you would like to make the Foundation aware of the work that you do, please send a one page cover letter and three copies of your organization’s information brochure. Since its inceptions the Foundation has proudly partnered with dozens of children’s charities in New England, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Contact Information:
http://www.oliviasorganics.org/Give_Back.asp
Olivia’s Organics
PO Box 6277 Chelsea, MA 02150617.884.1816
Olivia@Oliviasorganics.orgRamsey McCluskey Family Foundation – MA, RI, VT, NH, ME
The Ramsey McCluskey Family Foundation is a small private foundation started in 1999 and dedicated to the support of projects in education and the arts. The Foundation has two areas of interest that often coincide. Education: The Foundation will consider proposals for projects in any aspect of education — elementary through adult. The Arts: The Foundation will consider proposals for projects in any area of the arts. Of special interest are those proposals that make the arts more accessible to a wide audience. The Foundation is local in scope and generally limits it grantmaking to the northern New England area. (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine).
Contact Information:
http://www.ramseymccluskeyfndn.org/
Foundation Address:
The Ramsey McCluskey Family Foundation
P.O. Box 275
Lincoln, Massachusetts 01773
Phone: 781-259-9948 (email is strongly encouraged over phone calls!)Stop & Shop Supermarket Company – CT, MA. RI, NH, NJ, NY
The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company prides itself on being a good neighbor and supporting all the communities in which we operate. Our charitable initiatives, focusing on three major areas: hunger, combating childhood cancer, and children’s educational and support programs, have helped thousands of people of every background and lifestyle.
Contact Information:
http://www.stopandshop.com/about_us/community/index.htm
http://www.stopandshop.com/customer_service/contact/index.htmTextron
Textron is committed to responsible corporate citizenship and helping improve the quality of life in communities where our employees live and work. Textron is committed to helping prepare both adults and young people to achieve gainful employment and ultimately, success in the workforce. We support all levels of education, from early childhood to higher education and a variety of innovative job training programs for people of all ages and socio-economic backgrounds.
Funding areas: Job Training and Employment Development, Enrichment and Mentoring Programs for Youth, College/University Support – including scholarships and internships for women and minorities (with emphasis on technology, manufacturing and engineering). An important complement to educational opportunities is the support of arts and culture, community revitalization and health and human service programs. This area allows Textron to fund a variety of programs, initiatives and organizations that are important to the quality of life in the communities where they have a business presence.
Specifically, we focus on: Arts and Culture, Community Revitalization, Health and Human Service Organizations. Textron targets its giving to nonprofit agencies located in its headquarters state of Rhode Island and those locations where the company has divisional operations.
Contact Information:
http://www.textron.com/about/commitment/corp_giving/index.jspThe Vigneron Memorial Fund was established in 1959 to support charitable organizations that work to improve the lives of physically disabled children and adults. Preference is given to charitable organizations that serve the people of the city of Providence or the town of Narragansett, Rhode Island. The application deadline for the Vigneron Memorial Fund is April 1. Applicants will be notified of grant decisions before May 31.
Contact Information:
http://www.bankofamerica.com/philanthropic/foundation.action?fnId=66
