Neighborhood Villages Celebrates Early Education Funding in Senate FY25 State Budget
Final Senate FY25 Budget Includes $1.58 Billion For Early Education and Care with $475 Million Reserved for Child Care Operations Grants
BOSTON, MA (May 24, 2024) - Neighborhood Villages – a Boston-based nonprofit that advocates for solutions to the greatest challenges faced by the early education sector – celebrated the passage of the $58 billion fiscal 2025 state budget put forth by the Massachusetts State Senate that commits $1.58 billion to early education and care, including $475 million for the Commonwealth Cares for Children (C3) grant program and provisions making the program permanent.
Since their introduction in 2021, direct-to-provider grants have proven essential to the field’s viability and are vital to creating a sustainable child care sector.
Lauren Kennedy, co-president of Neighborhood Villages, issued the following statement:
“We are grateful to Senate President Spilka, Senate Ways and Means Chair Rodrigues, Senator Jason Lewis, and the entire Senate for their continued support and commitment to stabilize and improve our early education and care system in Massachusetts. We look forward to continued collaboration with Senate and House leaders to keep important proposed provisions intact, such as direct-to-provider grants,child care financial assistance for eligible families, and appropriate compensation for early educators. Our children, families, and early educators deserve a system that is fair, accessible, and sets everyone up for success in Massachusetts.”
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About Neighborhood Villages
Neighborhood Villages, founded in 2017 by Lauren Kennedy and Sarah Muncey, is a Boston-based systems-change non-profit that advocates for early education and care policy reform and implements scalable solutions that address the biggest challenges facing providers and the families who rely on them. For more information, visit https://www.neighborhoodvillages.org/our-work.
