At United Way, we believe every parent should have safe, affordable care for their children while they work.

Affordable, licensed child care continues to be a pressing need in our community. In 2018, we launched Cora's Kids' Early Childhood Care and Education Initiative to expand the number of affordable child care spots by providing licensing and professional development support to child care providers. Today, United Way’s Early Child Care Initiative serves providers and families across Greater Danbury and Greater New Milford.

United Way’s Early Childhood Care and Education Initiative builds equitable pathways out of poverty and economic mobility for providers, parents, and their children. Strengthening affordable, quality, local child care is essential to safeguarding the ability of working parents to make a living and preparing children for lifelong learning.

HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS

United Way staff recruits new providers through ongoing community outreach and trained Community Messengers. New potential providers are vetted and supported in the State of Connecticut’s child care licensing process. Once licensed, providers are invited to join Cora’s Kids and/or our provider network. As a part of the network, providers receive regular training, ongoing professional development opportunities in business development, educational coaching, benefits specialists, and Child Development Associate (CDA) credentialing, as well as access to a community of like-minded providers. Providers that choose to join the Cora’s Kids program agree to reserve 50% of their child care spots for ALICE families, capping their costs at affordable daily rates.