Dear John,
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the country, it is clear that this will not be a short-term crisis. Children and families will be impacted by this dire health emergency for months, and perhaps years, to come.
The health and well-being of the children, families and staff in the Ounce’s early childhood programs in Chicago remain our top priority.
But we’re also working to ensure that early childhood professionals, who continue to be on the front lines of this pandemic, and families across the nation have the resources and tools they need to weather this unpredictable storm. We are partnering with the Educare Learning Network, a national network of early education providers, policymakers and state leaders for a comprehensive crisis response plan to COVID-19. This plan includes:
Informing Policy
Our policy team is closely monitoring the evolving situation at federal, state and local levels and is continuously developing and advocating for policy recommendations that support families and programs affected by the health crisis. Last week, we issued guidance on how states can distribute funds from the federal stimulus package in a way that maximizes impact and allows the early childhood field to emerge from this crisis successfully. Follow our
Twitter feed
for the latest policy updates.
Supporting the FieldThe early childhood field is incredibly fragmented, and the current health crisis has only further highlighted what we already knew – there is an urgent need for a platform that allows those working in the field to exchange information and share best practices to work more effectively and drive collective action. In partnership with other early childhood organizations, we sped up the launch of a new online community platform, the Early Childhood Connector! The platform is growing rapidly and is already serving as a hub for COVID-19 response planning to ensure children, families and early childhood educators have the resources they need to stay safe during this time.
Encouraging ParentsThe COVID-19 pandemic is forcing parents to take on the challenging roles of teachers and have difficult and ever-changing conversations with young children about what this crisis means. We gathered a variety of our own expert-created resources and resources from our partners to help parents navigate this unprecedented time.
Providing for FamiliesWe continue to support the most vulnerable – the children and families we serve in our Educare Chicago and Healthy Parents & Babies programs – by providing direct financial supports for immediate food and supplies, and collaborating with key partners to provide additional resources. We’ve raised $75,000 of the $168,000 in funds needed to provide the 210 families in our Chicago programs with $100 per week in direct financial supports. Help us reach our goal today.
We will continue to share updates on our response as the situation evolves.
With great thanks, | 
