November 2020 NCFN Update

Written By NCFN

MEMBERSHIP

We are pleased to welcome the following organizations as new NCFN members!

  • Capital Impact Partners

  • Cinnaire

  • Hope Enterprise Corporation

Please contact Bevin Parker-Cerkez (bevin.parker@reinvestment.com) for questions about becoming an NCFN member.

RESEARCH & REPORTS

Businesses, Nonprofits, and Chambers of Commerce Support Solutions for Child Care Facilities

An article in Early Learning Nation highlights the crisis situation that many child care facilities – both franchises and mom-and-pop settings – are failing to meet the most basic safety requirements. According to a paper from Sarah Tracey and Linda Smith of the Bipartisan Policy Center, these challenges were present long before the pandemic, but reduced enrollment and additional health and safety expenses are now exacerbating the issue. Fortunately, there are positive solutions being implemented by Chambers of Commerce, businesses, and nonprofits across the country. The article highlights three examples:

  • The Missoula, Montana Chamber of Commerce spearheaded the renovation of an abandoned elementary school after a community survey identified long waitlists for care, which impacted the parent career prospects.  

  • Early Learning Property Management (ELPM) in Atlanta provides technical assistance to independent operators of child care businesses, which helps the businesses assess expansion opportunities, develop strategic plans, raise capital, and negotiate long-term leases below market rates.

  • Children’s Investment Fund (an NCFN member) in Massachusetts provides non-profit child care centers with low-interest loans, grants, technical assistance and training to help create higher-quality learning environments.


Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Offers Policy and Practice Recommendations for the Future of Child Care

A Community Development Research Brief from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, titled Child Care, COVID-19, and our Economic Future, explores the importance of child care to the economy, to reducing gender and racial disparities, and to enabling the success of the next generation. The Brief also offers implications for policy and practice, including:

  • Provide supports for child care small businesses

  • Value child care as a workforce and community investment

  • Engage new partners in strengthening the child care sector – including CDFIs

This brief complements the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s newly announced initiative, Investing in the Future of Child Care, in partnership with the Low Income Investment Fund.

Disparate Treatment of Schools and Child Care During the Pandemic Demonstrate Ongoing Inequities

An op-ed in the New York Times last month, School Is (Whisper It) a Form of Child Care, explores the sharp distinction that exists between school and child care, despite the fact that both are crucial forms of education and care. The author, Bryce Covert, writes that “separating child care from the larger K-12 educational system forces many of us to live with an expensive, patchwork, private system for children up to age 5.” To address this inequitable and ineffective system, the author suggests that child care should be made more like public school, which is guaranteed and free.

Indoor Air Quality and Ventilation Are Key Concerns for Safely Reopening Schools

An article from Jeff Vincent, co-founder and director of public infrastructure initiatives at the Center for Cities + Schools at UC Berkeley, explains the importance of fresh air ventilation in schools and classrooms in order to reduce coronavirus transmission. Unfortunately, Vincent notes that the majority of California classrooms visited in a 2013 study were not adequately ventilated. Significant federal resources will be needed for schools, as well as early care and education providers, to make the necessary ventilation upgrades that meet health and safety standards.

Yale Study Finds Exposure to Child Care Did Not Result in Elevated Risk of Spreading COVID-19 to Providers

A new study from the Yale Child Study Center surveyed over 50,000 child care providers and found that exposure to child care during the early months of the pandemic was not associated with an elevated risk of spreading COVID-19 to providers. Yale University professor and researcher Walter Gilliam noted that “as long as there are strong on-site measures to prevent infection, providing care for young children doesn’t seem to add to the provider’s risk of getting sick.” It is important to note that the study was conducted in May and June at a time when stay-at-home orders were more widely in effect, and many child care providers were operating with significantly reduced class sizes.

MEMBER NEWS

First Children’s Finance Receives $150,000 Award to Provide TA and Training in Rural Iowa

NCFN Member First Children’s Finance received a $150,000 award from USDA Rural Development to provide technical assistance (TA) and training to child care entities in Polk County, Iowa. The resources can be used to cover a range of topics, including: child care as a business, use and elements of business plans, understanding marketing and enrollment concepts, financial statements and procedures, cash flows and solutions for tight cash situations, budgeting, tuition and pricing, facilities and equipment management, and leading, directing, and managing staff. 

NCFN Members Partner on NMTC Project in Detroit

NCFN Members IFF, Capital Impact Partners, and Cinnaire recently closed on financing for a new early childhood education (ECE) center on the Marygrove campus in Detroit. The Kresge Foundation, Northern Trust, and MBS Urban Initiatives CDE, an affiliate of McCormack Baron Salazar, were also partners in the transaction. The project is being financed in part using $8 million in equity from the federal New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program. The NMTC Coalition has a project database of additional ECE projects financed through the NMTC Program.

POLICY UPDATE

Recap of the 2020 Elections

Former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris became president and vice-president elect on Saturday, November 7, 2020.  President Donald Trump has yet to concede despite the Biden-Harris ticket continuing to come out ahead as votes are counted across several battleground states. The Biden-Harris transition team has formed, and there is speculation about potential cabinet picks. There are still outstanding races that will determine the constituency of the next Congress, but at the time of writing we know that:

  • Democrats control 48 seats in the Senate and Republicans control 50 seats. In order for Democrats to take control of the Senate, they would have to win both Georgia Senate seats in the January 5 runoff elections and rely on Vice President Kamala Harris (D) as the chamber’s tie-breaker.

  • In the House, Democrats lost eight incumbents and await the final vote count in states such as California, New York and Utah. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is likely to have less room to maneuver an ideologically diverse caucus, while possibly still contending with a GOP-led Senate.

Eleven states also held gubernatorial elections in 2020. Heading into the 2020 elections, Republicans controlled 59 chambers and Democrats controlled 39 chambers. Of the eleven gubernatorial elections, seven of the incumbents were Republican and four were Democrats. Democrats won in Delaware, Washington, North Carolina; Republicans won in Indiana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Missouri and Montana. In the Alaska House, there was a power-sharing agreement between the parties as part of a coalition.

Of the eighty-six legislative chambers that held general elections on November 3, partisan control flipped in New Hampshire (with Republicans gaining majorities in the House of Representatives and the State Senate) and majorities in three chambers remained undecided (the Alaska House of Representatives, the Arizona House of Representatives, and the Arizona State Senate). Republicans have single-party control of the governorship and both state legislative chambers in New Hampshire and Montana. 

On Election Day, early education ballot initiatives passed in Oregon, St. Louis, San Antonio and Colorado. For more information, see this roundup of early childhood education (ECE) measures from New America Foundation’s Abbie Lieberman.

Lame Duck Congress Must Pass FY21 Spending Bills Before December 11 Deadline 

Congress passed a short-term spending resolution in September to extend government funding to December 11 at fiscal year (FY) 2020 spending levels. With the Senate reconvening on November 9 and the House reconvening on November 16, Congress must now negotiate FY21 funding levels prior to the December deadline in order to avoid a government shutdown. A COVID-19 stimulus package will likely be included these negotiations, although it remains to be seen if lawmakers will be able to reach a deal on the size or scope of a relief package given ongoing disagreements. The next  COVID recovery package is critical to stabilizing the child care industry, which only received $3.5 billion in CCDBG funding via the CARES Act, and due to a flawed program rollout and longstanding business capacity constraints, initially struggled to access other CARES Act resources like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). While the possibility of a lame duck session agreement seemed feasible prior to the 2020 elections, the landscape is now uncertain given President Trump’s unwillingness to concede. We will keep you updated as the situation evolves.

Thank you to NCFN policy committee members from LIIF, LISC, Self-Help, OFN and Reinvestment Fund for participating in virtual Hill meetings with staff to Senators Wyden (D-OR) and Casey (D-PA) to discuss the Rebuilding a Better Child Care Infrastructure Act. If you would like to join the NCFN policy committee or participate in Hill education activities, please contact Nicole Barcliff, (NCFN Co-Chair, LISC Policy Director) at nbarcliff@lisc.org.

Build Up California Hosts Legislative Briefing Focused on Preserving Family Child Care Spaces

Build Up California hosted a Legislative Briefing in September to articulate the need for facilities infrastructure and business support to preserve critical family child care spaces. Educators who presented on the webinar noted that they have had to be creative to manage their businesses during the pandemic, including maxing out their credit cards and taking out loans that they are afraid they will not be able to repay. Fortunately, many organizations are supporting family child care providers with loans and grants. According to Chris Bajarias, Program Officer at the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF), air purifiers are among the most requested equipment in applications for the San Francisco Renovation and Repair Grants. Resources to cover the cost of appliances, hand washing stations, and outdoor furniture are also common requests. 

UPCOMING EVENTS

November 18: After the Election: Antiracist Policy and America’s Children

  • The Alliance for Early Success hosts a webinar with Dr. Ibram Kendi, author of How to Be an Antiracist.

NCFN COMMITTEES

As NCFN prepares for a robust agenda in the new year, we hope you will consider joining one of our three active committees:

NCFN
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