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City staff outline $1 million early-childhood trust fund, slot allocations and data gaps for Richmond childcare
Summary
Officials described a new $1 million Early Childhood Care and Education Trust Fund administered with Thrive Birth to 5, the program’s prioritization of infant/toddler slots and family day homes, and ongoing work to compute a citywide penetration rate for publicly funded early-learning slots.
City staff and partners presented the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Trust Fund and data on early‑childhood service capacity, emphasizing priority investments in infant/toddler slots and family day homes while acknowledging limits in enrollment and demand data.
Eva Cohen, senior policy advisor and head of the city’s Office of Children and Families, walked committee members through definitions, funding streams, priorities and progress since July. The City invested $1 million in fiscal year 2025 to establish the ECCE Trust Fund; staff contracted Thrive Birth to 5 (the regional Ready Region lead agency) to administer subawards that place children into community‑based slots without building a new city system.
Cohen explained the fund’s priorities: increase infant and toddler public slots (the most underfunded and highest‑cost categories), support family day homes and…
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