Show Notes
Does universal Pre-K guarantee school readiness? To answer that question the podcast is headed to Wisconsin! Land of freezing winters, dairy cows, and universal Pre-K. Back in the 1980s, Wisconsin made publicly funded preschool almost ubiquitous throughout the state. But they’re still suffering from a massive underinvestment in childcare and early education, as well as one of the worst racial achievement gaps in the country. Gloria talks to Angela Harris, elementary school teacher and chairwoman of the Milwaukee Black Educators’ Caucus, about the importance of early education in preparing kids for kindergarten. Then Gloria talks to Brooke Legler, a childcare center owner and activist, about the post-pandemic childcare funding crisis in Wisconsin and how we can make sure every kid in Wisconsin has a chance at success. Special thanks to our partners who have made this season possible! This series is produced with Neighborhood Villages. Neighborhood Villages is a Massachusetts-based systems change nonprofit. It envisions a transformed, equitable early childhood education system that lifts up educators and sets every child and family up to thrive. In pursuit of this vision, Neighborhood Villages designs, evaluates, and scales innovative solutions to the biggest challenges faced by early childhood education providers and the children and families who rely on them, and drives policy reform through advocacy, education, and research. Visit www.neighborhoodvillages.org to learn more. This season was made possible with generous support from Imaginable Futures, a global philanthropic investment firm working with partners to build more healthy and equitable systems, so that everyone has the opportunity to learn and realize the future they imagine. Learn more at www.imaginablefutures.com. This series is presented by The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation. This series is presented by the Bainum Family Foundation. Through their WeVision EarlyEd initiative, they are elevating the voices of families and early childhood professionals, their “proximity experts,” to generate equitable and practical solutions to make the ideal vision of child care in America real. You can learn more at wevisionearlyed.org. This season is presented by The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, an organization working to improve the lives of individuals living in poverty and experiencing disadvantage throughout the world. Learn more at hiltonfoundation.org. The childcare crisis in the United States dramatically worsened during the pandemic. However, there are glimmers of hope in unlikely places. One of those is in impact investing. Small but growing, Care Access Real Estate (CARE) is a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). Today, home-based providers often struggle with landlords and Homeowner Associations (HOAs) who put roadblocks in the way of obtaining a license to operate. CARE seeks to "unlock the full potential and aspirations of center and home-based providers". CARE does this as a childcare friendly landlord aiming to expand supply where demand is acute in under-resourced areas. Ultimately, CARE seeks to build the wealth of childcare providers by putting them on a path of one day owning their own home. Mission Driven Finance invests in homes as childcare infrastructure. One by one, real dreams of working in this space are coming true. Childcare is infrastructure: it is the pathway to success for parents, caregivers, early educators, and most importantly the children themselves. If No One Is Coming to Save US, we must save ourselves. You can find more on CARE and Mission Driven Finance here: https://www.missiondrivenfinance.com/invest/real-estate/care/ Follow No One is Coming to Save Us wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts. Laugh, cry, be outraged, and hear solutions! Jo
More from No One is Coming to Save Us
Every young person deserves access to high-quality education and career opportunities. But for young parents, none of that is possible without first solving for the basic need of childcare. In the sixth episode of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's series on what young people need to thrive, host Gloria Riviera talks with Bella Agee, a 21-year-old student, worker, and mom, and Quanic Fullard, Senior Associate of Family and Youth Financial Stability at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, about why access to childcare sets young parents up for success – and benefits the collective good.
People are going to space for fun, yet building a supportive child care system can seem impossible. What gives? In this episode, we’re looking at the work of Neighborhood Villages, an organization that's spent nearly a decade creating the blueprint and putting into action what a truly supportive child care looks like – one that values kids and caregivers alike. From providing material goods like coats and diapers to supporting kids’ development through relational health, they’re proving that a supportive child care system isn't just achievable, it's long overdue. This series is created and produced with Neighborhood Villages, a nonprofit dedicated to transforming child care through innovative program-building and policy design. Visit www.neighborhoodvillages.org to learn more. If you’d like to contribute to the fight for a better child care system, consider a donation to Neighborhood Villages by visiting www.neighborhoodvillages.org/donate-now. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our shows and get bonus content. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this show and all Lemonada shows: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Finding child care is too often a maze of confusion and financial strain. Families struggle to secure a spot, navigate different options, and afford care – if they can find it at all. In this episode, we talk to Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University Jeff Liebman, to break down the root causes of the child care crisis, and we hear from listeners about the ripple effects all of this has on families nationwide. Then, we imagine what a better system could look like – one that works for all families, not just the lucky few. This series is created and produced with Neighborhood Villages, a nonprofit dedicated to transforming child care through innovative program-building and policy design. Visit www.neighborhoodvillages.org to learn more. If you’d like to contribute to the fight for a better child care system, consider a donation to Neighborhood Villages by visiting www.neighborhoodvillages.org/donate-now. To learn more about Jeff Liebman’s research, watch this presentation or check out this Harvard Kennedy School post. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our shows and get bonus content. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this show and all Lemonada shows: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
High-quality child care isn’t about fancy buildings or high-tech gadgets - it’s about relationships. Meaningful connections between caregivers and children create the foundation for great early education, no matter the setting. In this episode, we talk to early childhood expert Junlei Li to explore what truly defines high-quality early learning, the many places where children can experience it, and why paying teachers like teachers is key to sustaining quality care. We also visit a home child care in Juneau, Alaska, where exceptional early education is happening every day. This series is created and produced with Neighborhood Villages, a nonprofit dedicated to transforming child care through innovative program-building and policy design. Visit www.neighborhoodvillages.org to learn more. If you’d like to contribute to the fight for a better child care system, consider a donation to Neighborhood Villages by visiting www.neighborhoodvillages.org/donate-now. To learn more about Junlei Li’s research, check out this webinar. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our shows and get bonus content. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this show and all Lemonada shows: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
What would it mean to have child care for your kid from ages zero to five, no matter what you make, where you live, or whether or not you’re employed? The United States is one of the only countries in the world that doesn’t offer meaningful support to families. But in New York, there’s a movement daring to challenge that status quo by demanding a better system: guaranteed universal public child care. In this episode, we hear from Rebecca Bailin, Executive Director and founder at New Yorkers United for Child Care, about how her organization is fighting to make child care a reality for all children across New York state. This series is created and produced with Neighborhood Villages, a nonprofit dedicated to transforming child care through innovative program-building and policy design. Visit www.neighborhoodvillages.org to learn more. If you’d like to contribute to the fight for a better child care system, consider a donation to Neighborhood Villages by visiting www.neighborhoodvillages.org/donate-now. To learn more about the fight for guaranteed universal public child care in New York, check out united4childcare.org. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our shows and get bonus content. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this show and all Lemonada shows: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.