Communities come together for young children

Portland offers a wealth of resources to residents, but a community network’s analysis has revealed a surprising situation: Seven areas in the city are “child care deserts” where the number of children far exceeds available child care slots.

“There were other revelations in the data,” says Portland’s Starting Strong director Katie Soucy, but the level of disparity of quality early care options was unexpected.  Moving forward, Starting Strong plans to explore ways to expand and improve child care options in two targeted Portland neighborhoods.

Starting Strong is one of six community organizations awarded a MaineCF Early Childhood Community Grant in 2018 to gather data about their 0-5 population, map community resources, identify barriers, and develop local solutions. The foundation launched the program as part of its strategic goal vision: that all Maine children receive a healthy start and arrive at kindergarten developmentally prepared to succeed in school and life.

“The grants helped to create local cross-sector networks of people who were willing to roll up their sleeves and look deeply at the issues families with young children face in their communities,” says Stephanie Eglinton, MaineCF senior program officer. In Portland, network members are breaking through institutional silos within organizations that work with children ages birth to three. “We have the health care sector talking about improving access to quality early learning environments,” says Cassie Grantham, director of Child Health Programs at MaineHealth. “We are making the connections between these care and education needs and the social determinants of health.”

The other five community groups shared these insights from their studies:

• Healthy Peninsula’s network surveyed young families in the nine towns of the Blue Hill peninsula and Stonington/Deer Isle and found high rates of depression and feelings of isolation among parents. Strategies under consideration include creating peer-to-peer networks, play groups, and a family resource hub.
• While United Way of Eastern Maine and local partners were aware of high poverty levels in Piscataquis County, they were surprised to find families aren’t using available services such as SNAP (food stamps) as much as they could. Now they’re conducting a survey to better understand the impact of stigma and shame that can be associated with living in poverty.
• The Biddeford Ready! network, under the aegis of United Way of York County, learned that a recent economic resurgence has put such pressure on affordable housing that the city is experiencing high eviction rates, high levels of transience for students in the school system, and strains on families with children. The network has shared its community profile with city officials who are using it in their planning.
• Going Places-Presque Isle, coordinated by Aroostook County Action Program, inspired the community to create an in-town bus loop that will help families who need transportation to work, child care, and services. Northern Maine Community College is developing a bus driver academy to address a driver shortage.
• Recognizing that native populations are underrepresented in public data sets, Wabanaki Health and Wellness conducted interviews to assess early childhood resources in Maine’s five Wabanaki communities. One finding: less cultural programming is available for young children and families compared to programs for teens.

The six communities submitted proposals in 2019 to MaineCF for grants to help them address issues identified in their research through action plans. Those projects will be complete by 2022.

To find out more about the Early Childhood Community Grant Program, contact Senior Program Officer Leslie Goode at lgoode@mainecf.org.

Photo: The Week of the Young Child Festival is part of an annual national effort to focus public attention on the development of young families and needs of their families. Portland’s celebration includes a parade and the School Readiness Festival. Photo Molly Haley, courtesy Starting Strong