Early childhood development has been a core element of the St. Joseph Youth Alliance from the beginning, with a focus on improving the education and general life experiences of young children. The St. Joseph Youth Alliance has two priorities in this area – quality child care and school readiness. To ensure that these issues are addressed, the Alliance organizes and/or sponsors child care provider training, provides scholarships to individuals pursuing early childhood care career paths and aids child care facilities in providing quality care and assisting with the early accreditation process. The Alliance also supports community efforts to identify ways to assess school readiness, collaborates with community agencies on early childhood initiatives and takes the lead in organizing an annual Greater St. Joseph Area Community Children’s Fair.

The Alliance receives funding through the Missouri Department of Social Services to support quality Early Childhood programs in the following Missouri counties; Atchison, Andrew, Buchanan, Caldwell, Clinton, Daviess, DeKalb, Gentry, Holt, Nodaway, Worth.

Early brain development is the foundation of all future growth. Early learning experiences are most important in the first three years of life.

Educare - Educare provides free resources, technical assistance and training opportunities to child care providers, with an emphasis on providers who accept state subsidy. Educare works to improve the early learning experiences for low-income children from birth to five years of age. Since these children are not yet attending school, the goal for Educare is to help ensure children receive a solid foundation for school success and are ready to enter kindergarten.

Child Care Start-up & Expansion- These funds provide financial assistance to increase the capacity of quality child care programs that offer care for infants and toddlers of low-income working families. For State of Missouri licensing information go to Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

Services Include:

• On-site technical assistance to help with starting your child care business
• Funds for equipment & facility changes required by state licensing

Programs that are accredited have gone beyond minimum licensing standards and have made a commitment to provide the kind of environment, attention, and stimulating activities that children need.

Services Include

• On-site technical assistance individualized to meet program needs.
• Training based on the Missouri Core Competencies.
• Support groups facilitated by child care providers who are accredited.
• Peer modeling time in a quality accredited program to observe best practices in action.
• Funds for scholarships, equipment & supplies to meet accreditation standards.

All funding is subject to availability & the ability to meet criteria. Funding and program participation requirements are subject to change. Please contact the Youth Alliance for more information.

For more information on these programs please email us or call 816-232-0050 or toll free 866-262-0050.