GREENDALE, Ind. (Jan. 24, 2025) – United Way of Greater Cincinnati Southeast Indiana is investing in innovative early learning opportunities and supporting child care training thanks to a $348,000 grant from Early Learning Indiana.* A portion of the funding enhances a home-based e-learning pilot program, while the other portion is earmarked for Building Blocks, an organization that works to improve the quality of early childhood education.
“We’re always on the lookout for effective strategies capable of transforming our community,” said Moira Weir, President and CEO of United Way of Greater Cincinnati. “Through partnerships and pilot programs like these, we are advancing student achievement, improving youth outcomes and building a stronger future for children and families throughout our region.”
Early Learning Pilot Project
United Way was initially awarded $250,000 in 2023 to create a pilot program that explores how technology and online educational services can expand access to high-quality early learning for families in Southeast Indiana.
More than 30 children are enrolled in the Southeast Indiana Early Learning Project right now. Their families can access an asynchronous curriculum and synchronous learning through virtual and in-person sessions with our Success By 6® staff. Families also receive quarterly learning boxes with books, activities and learning tools for caregivers to use at home.
Caregivers learn ways to extend at-home learning related to language and literacy development, math, motor skills and social-emotional learning. Now, an additional $94,000 from this latest round of Early Years Initiative funding will further incorporate social-emotional curriculum into the pilot program.
Building Blocks Partnership
United Way is also pleased to continue our partnership with Building Blocks by investing the remainder of the grant in their Regional Training Center (RTC) work. The RTC aims to improve child outcomes by increasing the capacity of early learning sites to provide high-quality early childhood education.
Building Blocks reports that there are about 3,000 infants and toddlers in Dearborn and Ohio counties but only 294 high-quality child care slots in all of Dearborn County. Many local families lack access to high-quality preschool, whether due to costs, waitlists or both. “This grant provides us with significant tools to reach preschoolers who would otherwise be left behind,” said Karen Snyder, Director, United Way of Greater Cincinnati Southeast Indiana. “We’re excited to expand the program and offer families in Southeast Indiana more opportunities for improved outcomes.”
Research has long shown that it’s difficult for children who begin elementary school without kindergarten readiness skills to catch up to their peers, and their educations suffer in the long term. United Way strives to improve the odds so tomorrow’s leaders can build a better foundation today.
*Early Learning Indiana, an Indianapolis-based nonprofit, awarded the grant through its Early Years Initiative, which is funded by Lilly Endowment Inc.
ABOUT EARLY LEARNING INDIANA
Early Learning Indiana is an expert and trusted voice on early childhood education that works statewide to provide leadership, advocacy and early childhood education services that continually improve the early learning landscape in Indiana. Early Learning Indiana operates 12 nationally accredited, high-quality Day Early Learning centers, a network of premier community-based centers used to advance the science of early learning, train the next generation of teachers and leaders, and instill knowledge and skills in the children we serve. Through regional and statewide programs, the organization works to ensure young children are empowered with essential skills to thrive in kindergarten and beyond. Learn more at EarlyLearningIN.org.
ABOUT LILLY ENDOWMENT INC.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J. K. Lilly and his sons, Eli and J.K. Jr., through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, the Endowment is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with its founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion. Although the Endowment funds programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion, it maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana.