The Maui News

A program that focuses on strengthening the education pipeline from early childhood through higher education has received $19.9 million to improve the early childhood care and education workforce, expand access to early childhood services and create seamless early learning opportunities for children from birth through third grade.

The Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education, in partnership with the Executive Office on Early Learning, has been awarded the federal grant as a renewal of the Preschool Devleopment Grant originally awarded to the state in 2018. The funding will bring in more than $6.6 million a year for three years.

“Supporting our children today helps to ensure a robust future for everyone in Hawaii. We are excited to work with the entire early care and education community to make an impact,” Stephen Schatz, executive director of Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education, said in a news release on Monday.

The renewal grant offers Hawaii an opportunity to reassess, reimagine and restart as it emerges and recovers from the pandemic, the news release said. That vision includes a stronger infrastructure to address equitable access to high-quality programs and services for all children from birth through 5 years old.

Through the renewal grant, Hawaii will strive to achieve this vision by:

• Conducting a statewide needs assessment to determine the current landscape and the potential impacts of the pandemic.

• Developing a strategic plan informed by the new and previous needs assessments to improve the utilization, timeliness, efficiency and effectiveness of services and strengthen governance for the mixed delivery system.

• Connecting families to support and services to meet their needs.

• Building on the recommendations of a 2022 workforce compensation study.

• Developing a standardized quality improvement model.

“We look forward to working together to build a strong and comprehensive early childhood system through the ‘Our Keiki, Our ‘Ohana, Our Future Project,’ ” said Yuuko Arikawa-Cross, director of the Executive Office on Early Learning. “Addressing short- and long-term goals through this grant will ensure that all Hawaii keiki have a strong foundation upon which to build their future.”

Hawaii P-20 and the Office on Early Learning will work closely with the Early Learning Board to ensure successful grant implementation over the three-year period. The board includes representation from state Departments of Health, Education, Human Services and the UH System, as well as nonprofit agencies and community partners.

Subgrants will be awarded to public entities to strengthen the early learning system’s infrastructure — including the early childhood care and education workforce — through peer mentoring and apprenticeship programs, and a wage supplement initiative. Subgrants will be also awarded to private entities through a competitive grant process to enhance parents’ knowledge and family engagement; deliver program quality improvement practices (e.g., mental health consultative support services, trauma-informed care workshops and a shared services model for family child care home providers); and expand Early Head Start — Family Child Care partnership programs to increase access and availability of infant and toddler care. Requests for proposals will be solicited in the spring.

Hawaii P-20 is a statewide partnership led by the Executive Office on Early Learning, the state Department of Education and the University of Hawaii System.

For more information, visit www.hawaiiP20.org.