ELC IN THE NEWS
Passionate about high-quality early education and wish to support Pinellas’ child care community? Please scroll down
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Looking to interview someone from the Early Learning Coalition or to request a speaker? Email whall@elcpinellas.org.
RECENT NEWS
EARLY LEARNING COALITION TO OFFER IN-PERSON FREE REGISTRATION
JANUARY 18, 2023 – Patch
In an effort to provide more access to parents, theEarly Learning Coalition of Pinellas Countywill host in-person, walk-in Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) registration events throughout Pinellas County on Jan. 20 and Jan. 25 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Read More >
THERE’S A CHILD CARE CRISIS IN FLORIDA.
HERE’S WHY THAT MATTERS
DECEMBER 12, 2022 – Tampa Bay Times
Early education professionals are saying a “child care crisis” is underway in Tampa Bay. Some of the most important years for a child’s social, emotional and language development occur before they enter grade school. More than 90% of a child’s brain will have developed by the time most enter kindergarten. Read More >
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS IN PINELLAS WILL RECEIVE SOCIOECONOMIC LEARNING TRAINING
MAY 24, 2022 –The “Rebound and Recovery” program will be incorporated into a county-wide initiative for the coalition, Behavior Boot Camp. This initiative offers training and interventions to improve safety, connection, problem-solving and behavioral and social-emotional learning skills in preschool settings. The goal of Behavior Boot Camp is to reduce or eliminate preschool expulsions due to behavioral issues. Read More >
EARLY EDUCATORS IN PINELLAS WILL RECEIVE TRAINING
MAY 24, 2022 – The Florida State University College of Social Work’s Center for the Study and Promotion of Communities, Families and Children has teamed up with the Early Learning Coalition (ELC) of Pinellas County to provide socioeconomic learning training to local educators. Read More >
PINELLAS COUNTY PRESCHOOLS IN NEED OF TEACHERS
MAY 16, 2022 – According to the Early Learning Coalition of Pinellas County, there are more than 300 preschool teaching and teaching aide positions unfilled in the county, and more than 1,500 children on waiting lists, waiting for those instructors to be hired. Read More >
EARLY LEARNING COALITION HOSTS VPK EVENTS
May 13, 2022 – In an effort to provide more access to parents, the Early Learning Coalition (ELC) of Pinellas County is hosting Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) registration events throughout Pinellas County, beginning May 18. VPK is a free program for 4-year-old children whose families reside in Florida. Read More >
CHILDREN ACROSS PINELLAS COUNTY
DRAW THEIR FAVORITE TEACHERS
MAY 5, 2022 – It’s called Crayons For Kids Brains. The mission is to encourage creativity among children from birth to five years old by drawing their favorite teacher. Read More >
PRE-K AND LATINOS: HOW TO HELP
LATINO CHILDREN GET AHEAD
MAY 5, 2022 – Lindsay Carson, the CEO of ELC Pinellas joins Gayle Guyardo the host of the nationally syndicated heath and wellness show Bloom Find to show how Pre-K programs can play a key role in helping these children in school readiness and educational achievement. Read More >
“IT’S A CRISIS” PARENTS SCRAMBLE
TO FIND OPEN CHILD CARE
ACROSS TAMPA BAY
April 12, 2022 – Tampa Bay parents tell ABC Action News they’re in the middle of a childcare crisis. Thousands of families are on waiting lists as they scramble to find places for their young children to be cared for while they work. Read More >
HISTORIC NEWS ABOUT THE ADVANCEMENT OF
EARLY EDUCATION OUT OF TALLAHASSEE
February 4, 2022 – The leadership in the Florida Senate and the Senate Appropriations Committee have made a historic addition
to their proposed appropriations budget to allocate an additional $392 million over the next three years to the VPK education program which would further enhance the kindergarten readiness rate of our State’s youngest citizens. Read More >
SENATOR LORANNE AUSLEY AND REPRESENTATIVE BEN DIAMOND FILE THE BRIGHTER FUTURE ACT,
EARLY LEARNING SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
January 7, 2022 – As Florida families struggle to afford rising child care costs, Representative Ben Diamond (D- St. Petersburg) has filed the companion bill to Senator Loranne Ausley’s (D- Tallahassee) “Brighter Future Act.” This legislation would create a scholarship program to ensure every Florida child has access to high-quality, early education ahead of kindergarten.
Read More >
PRESCHOOL TEACHER SHORTAGE
AFFECTING PINELLAS COUNTY
December 22, 2021 – The national shortage of preschool teachers is hitting close to home, with the Early Learning Coalition of Pinellas County reporting half of childcare providers it recently surveyed now have a waiting list due to staffing issues. Read More >
CHILD CARE PROVISIONS IN
BUILD BACK BETTER ACT COULD HELP LOCAL FAMILIES
November 17, 2021 – For many families, child care costs can be daunting, with thousands of dollars needed each year per child. But relief could be on the way through the Build Back Better Act, which aims to lower those costs significantly through federal funding. Read More >
ELC CEO DISCUSSES GAPS IN EARLY LEARNING AT FLORIDA HOUSE EDUCATION SUBCOMMITEE
October 21, 2021 –House Early Learning and Elementary Education Subcommitee
The child care industry is facing unprecedented times. Listen below to ELC CEO Lindsay Carson and other early learning leaders as they speak about barriers to access and quality.
Read More >
YESTERDAY’S NEWS
‘WE ARE IN A CRISIS’: TAMPA BAY CHILD CARE INDUSTRY FACES PANDEMIC STRUGGLES
October 6, 2021 –Tampa Bay Times
The nation’s private child care industry was already struggling with high turnover and tight margins before the pandemic. Now, it is dealing with staffing shortages, constant disruptions from coronavirus quarantines and threats to workers’ health from the virus. Worsening issues have meant even fewer open seats and continued uncertainty for parents searching for care.
Read More >
THE CRITICAL NATURE OF EARLY LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT
May 19, 2021 –The Weekly Challenger
The Achievement Gap is a term used to describe an age-old phenomenon that precedes the infamous Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954. Time might have lulled us all into a state of normalization that is no longer met with righteous indignation, and it is not unique to any particular school district in the nation.
Read More >
STRAIN OF COVID PANDEMIC CALLS
FOR NEW TOOLS TO HELP CHILDREN COPE
May 19, 2021 –BayNews 9
CLEARWATER, Fla. — According to Bay Area child-care providers, young children are continuing to struggle emotionally because of the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s why some teachers are learning tools to help their students cope. At Hope Academy International in Clearwater, they’ve invested in mental-health training for her teachers.
Read More >
CHILD CARE CENTERS IN NEED OF
FUNDING, TEACHERS
May 14, 2021 –BayNews 9
LAKELAND, Fla. — The pandemic hit the child care industry hard. In Lakeland, Karina Sloan was forced to temporarily shut down one of her centers because of the virus. Families were not coming. Now, her child care centers are back open, but Sloan has lost close to $50,000 trying to operate.
Read More >
CHILD CARE PROVIDERS CELEBRATED
ACROSS THE NATION
May 10, 2021 –Patch
Pinellas County, Fla. – The Early Learning Coalition will join community organizations across the country in observing Provider Appreciation Day to celebrate the efforts of local early learning and school-age care providers in what has been a year of tremendous challenge for child care.
Read More >
FLORIDA’S VPK PROGRAM EXPERIENCING ENROLLMENT DECLINES FOR UPCOMING YEAR
May 8, 2021 –Patch
TAMPA BAY, FL (February 2021) – Florida’s free Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK program is experiencing enrollment declines, concerning many Florida child care providers and advocates who are troubled what the long-term effects of COVID-19 will have on many young learners.
Read More >
EDUCATORS WORRY ABOUT CHILD READINESS AS FLORIDA VPK ENROLLMENT RATES PLUMMET IN 2021
March 24, 2021 –ABC ACTIONS NEWS
Pinellas County, Fla. –Concerns are growing that Florida’s youngest learners will not be prepared to start school as the state’s voluntary pre-kindergarten program, or VPK, has seen a dramatic drop in enrollment.
Read More >
DECLINE IN FLORIDA’S VPK PROGRAM
HAS EDUCATORS WORRIED
March 18, 2021 – BayNews 9
Pinellas County, Fla. –The national enrollment in Florida’s VPK Program is down and educators are worried about the long-term impact that could have on students. Sandy White is the Director of Barlow Little Palms Pre-School in Palm Harbor. She said typically she has 9 or more children enrolled in the center’s VPK class but this school year it’s been a struggle.
Read More >
EARLY LEARNING COALITION OF PINELLAS SEEING DECLINE IN VPK ENROLLMENT
March 12, 2021 – WFLA
Pinellas County, Fla. –Early learning educators and advocates are worried after seeing a decline in enrollment for Florida’s voluntary prekindergarten (VPK) program. The Early Learning Coalition of Pinellas tells 8 On Your Side they are seeing roughly about a 20% decline.
Read More >
VOLUNTARY PRE-K PROGRAM SEES
SIGNIFICANT ENROLLMENT
March 12, 2021 – WUSF Public Media
ST. PETERSBURG, FL – Florida’sVoluntary Prekindergarten program has experienced enrollment declines in the past year, raising concerns about what the long-term effects might be for many young learners. At the same time, the program is trying to deal with a performance assessment that shows almost half the students at the next level might not be getting the tools they need.
Read More >
FLORIDA’S VPK PROGRAM EXPERIENCING ENROLLMENT DECLINES FOR UPCOMING YEAR
March 8, 2021 – St. Pete Catalyst
TAMPA BAY, FL –Florida’s free Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK program is experiencing enrollment declines, concerning many Florida child care providers and advocates who are troubled what the long-term effects of COVID-19 will have on many young learners.
Read More >
Media Resources & More
Please use the resources below to help spread the word about the work we do to support high-quality, equitable child care in Pinellas County. If you have questions about the resources or need different formats, please email whall@elcpinellas.org.
The ELC E-News
To subscribe to the ELC E-News, please email the Communications Manager at whall@elcpinellas.org.
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