ARP-HCY Spotlights: Early Childhood
EdAdvance is one of Connecticut’s six Regional Educational Service Centers, and serves Western Connecticut. EdAdvance is using ARP-HCY funds to increase staffing capacity. It will be hiring a part-time case manager, who will focus on outreach to youth experiencing homelessness, and will provide assistance to families experiencing homelessness seeking affordable housing. EdAdvance also will be hiring an early childhood specialist to do community outreach and enroll young children experiencing homelessness in school, early intervention programs, and other early childhood programs. This addresses needs determined in visits to domestic violence shelters and the local home- visiting program, which revealed increased numbers of young children experiencing homelessness. In addition to these positions, EdAdvance will be hiring a part-time van driver to help meet the growing transportation needs of McKinney-Vento students, starting in the fall. EdAdvance also used ARP-HCY funds to install WiFi routers in nearby shelters, as it was discovered that regular school-provided hotspots were not sufficient to meet the connectivity needs of families in shelters. ARP-HCY will also continue to be used to provide other services, such as emergency hotel stays, gas cards, camperships, and tutoring for students.
“Having additional ARP-HCY funds has been a gift to actually have resources at the ready for plans and the ability to make change with McKinney-Vento families by investing in staff to enhance outreach and support.”- Michelle Anderson, Director of Early Childhood and Family Programs