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Presented by Dr. Zeenat Janmohamed, Executive Director & Senior Policy Analyst, Atkinson Centre, 91����/University of Toronto, at the ECEBC Conference 2024, May 24, 2024

Excerpt: "Approximately $11 million in additional funding for new and ongoing professional learning opportunities is being provided for programs, such as the ECE Peer Mentoring program and the Early Years Professional Development Bursary program. Three organizations are working with the government to provide the programs to support child care professionals, and in doing so, give families peace of mind that their children are receiving the highest level of care."

Excerpt: "Budget 2024 promises over $10 million to increase training for early childhood educators over the next two years. The federal government is calling on provinces and territories to develop workforce strategies that best support the recruitment, retention, and recognition of these essential workers. The ultimate goal? To build “the right foundations for a community-based and truly Canada-wide child care”, one anchored in publicly planned and regulated non-profit services. However, a stark reality confronts this vision: the pervasive presence of private, for-profit child care."

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Excerpt: "This new child care centre was made possible through approximately $3 million from the ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund. The fund is jointly supported by provincial investments and federal funding under the 2021-22 to 2025-26 Canada-British Columbia Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement. The City of Vancouver funded the remaining construction costs via development contributions."

Excerpt: "That’s why, today in Kanata, the Honourable Jenna Sudds, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, highlighted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent announcement of $201.87 million over four years, with $135 million through 2025–2026, to help build more inclusive child care spaces across Ontario through the Government of Canada’s $625 million Early Learning and Child Care Infrastructure Fund. This investment will help Ontario reach the shared goal of building 86,000 new child care spaces by December 2026. The announcement was made at the grand opening of Andrew Fleck’s Forest Explorers Outdoor Learning Centre in Kanata, which will provide 73 new child care spaces (10 infant spaces, 15 toddler spaces and 48 preschool spaces)."

Excerpt: "Today, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, Gary Anandasangaree, joined Chief Darcy Bear of the Whitecap Dakota Nation, to announce that the Government of Canada will invest an additional $35,000 in Whitecap Dakota Nation’s Early Learning Centre to develop and promote best practices and innovative models in Indigenous early learning and child care programs. This funding comes from the Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care Quality Improvement Projects. The Whitecap Early Learning Centre is a provincially licensed childcare facility that can support up to 56 children, aged 6 weeks to 12 years. The centre is managed by Whitecap Dakota Nation and is open to both Band members and non-member families. The centre believes in educating the whole child; intellectually, emotionally, physically and spiritually, with a strong emphasis on Dakota culture."

Excerpt: "The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today highlighted the new National School Food Program. With an investment of $1 billion over five years, the Program, included in Budget 2024, will provide meals to 400,000 more kids every year, beyond those served by existing school food programs. This will mean peace of mind for parents and healthy meals for kids – helping them learn, grow, and get the best start to life. The Program will also be a safety net for the kids who need this support the most. We’re going to work with provinces, territories, and Indigenous partners to get this program to schools across the country."

Video on the value of early childhood educators to high quality early learning and child care.

Excerpt: "New this year, school districts will use their existing Capital Asset Planning System to request funding for child care projects on school grounds, in addition to education capital funding. This makes it easier for school districts to plan for and create more child care on school grounds for families in their district. It will also help the ministry consider school district child care projects alongside education projects."

The Centre for Black Studies in Education (CBSE) is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Andrew B. Campbell as the new Director. We are excited for the leadership that Professor Campbell will bring to CBSE.

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