//Georgia’s DECAL awards Two-Generation Innovation grants

Georgia’s DECAL awards Two-Generation Innovation grants

Share with friends

Release:

ATLANTA, Ga., (June 5, 2020) – The Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) has awarded a total of $80,000 in grants to help community partnerships in five counties pilot or expand programs that connect parents who are themselves students with high-quality early learning for their young children. Two-Generation Innovation Grants (TGIG) are intended to help communities develop strategies for reaching out to student parents, who face substantial hurdles to achieving economic security.

This is the third year DECAL has offered two-gen grants.

“Two-gen strategies generate long-term economic benefits not only for children and their parents, but also for local communities and the state of Georgia,” said Amy M. Jacobs, DECAL Commissioner. “I am encouraged by the progress community partnerships have made, and I look forward to seeing the results of this funding cycle.”

DECAL awards two-gen grants in two categories: Capacity-Building Grants and Implementation Grants. Capacity-Building Grants of $10,000 are made to communities that are new to using a two-gen approach to foster partnerships between adult-serving organizations and child-serving organizations, evaluate existing resources, conduct needs assessments, and incorporate parent perspectives into planning two-gen policies.

Recipients of Capacity-Building Grants for 2020–2021:

Black Child Development Institute–Atlanta and its community partners will conduct a needs assessment for student parents seeking workforce development resources and create a program called Powe) and its partners will form a task force to conduct a needs assessment, create a new orientation for student parents, and plan for promoting workforce development opportunities at local child care programs and Head Start.
Gordon State College (Lamar County) and its partners will form a task force to conduct a needs assessment, create a new orientation for student parents, and plan for promoting workforce development opportunities at local child care programs and Head Start.

Heard County Community Partnership has a team in place to design and conduct a needs assessment, host Class Reunions for parents, and incorporate a two-gen approach into existing operations to connect parents to resources for adult education, workforce opportunities, and quality child care.

Implementation grants of $25,000 each are awarded to communities with established partnerships already collaborating to advance two-gen policies and programming. Recipients of implementation grants are expected to launch or expand programs that connect parents of children in subsidized early childhood learning settings to workforce training or postsecondary educational opportunities and/or connect parents already enrolled in workforce training or postsecondary education to high quality early care and learning for their children.

Recipients of 2020–2021 Implementation Grants:

Children and Family Program at Kennesaw State University (Cobb County) will expand its Student-Parent Ambassador program to reach out to parents who have not considered postsecondary education for themselves because of perceived barriers associated with the rigors of coursework and childrearing. The partnership will offer an orientation for student parents and drop-in services.

Community Foundation for Northwest Georgia (Whitfield County) will strengthen existing programs and improve resource-sharing by creating a Resource Center for student parents at Georgia Northwestern Technical College. These students will also be able to attend Life Skills classes at community child care learning centers. The Whitfield County partnership received a capacity-building grant last year.

About DECAL

The Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) is responsible for meeting the child care and early education needs of Georgia’s children and their families. It administers the nationally recognized Georgia’s Pre-K Program, licenses child care centers and home-based child care, administers Georgia’s Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) program, federal nutrition programs, and manages Quality Rated, Georgia’s community powered child care rating system.

The department also houses the Head Start State Collaboration Office, distributes federal funding to enhance the quality and availability of child care, and works collaboratively with Georgia child care resource and referral agencies and organizations throughout the state to enhance early care and education. For more information, go to www.decal.ga.gov.