Early Learning Communities
To find an ELC near you, call United Way 2-1-1.
United Way for Southeastern Michigan is proud to be a Great Start Regional Resource Center.
Visit EarlyChildhoodSEM.org to learn more about our professional development and training opportunities for childcare providers.
Why it matters
90% of a child’s brain is developed by the age of four. Yet by age three, a child in poverty will hear 30 million fewer words than a child in a middle-income home.
A child born to a low-income home has only a 48% chance of educational success; that success rate drops to 10% by age three if that child is not stimulated through reading and creative play.
What we’ve done
United Way established Early Learning Communities (ELCs), where parents and caregivers can go to learn the skills to build nurturing, literacy-rich environments for the children in their lives.
- Last year we expanded Early Learning Communities (ELCs) in nine communities from five hubs serving 376 parents and caregivers to 40 hubs serving almost 4700 parents and caregivers.
- We provided 10,000 subsidized childcare providers six hours of state-mandated training through our ELCs.
- Developed an early learning curriculum for Detroit Public Television Channel 56.2 to provide the successful ELC model to families and caregivers across the region.
Our goals for the future
2018
- Have 80% of children entering kindergarten ready to succeed.
Our partners
In addition to United Way, the following individuals and organizations are partners in this effort: Congressman Sander Levin, the Early Childhood Investment Corporation, The Ford Motor Company Fund, General Motors, the GM Foundation, the HighScope Educational Research Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, the Max M. & Marjorie Fisher Foundation, Panera Bread and The Skillman Foundation and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.