Illinois AEYC is excited to announce we are the recipient of a grant funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. They are generously funding a partnership formed by NAEYC, Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA), the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC), the Center for American Progress (CAP), and the First Five Years Fund (FFYF), who have come together to develop and implement a coordinated advocacy and action strategy to increase access to high-quality child care in states across the nation. This grant was a very quick turn around and we would like to thank our collaborative partners who were all very quick to assist. We look forward to continuing our partnership and kicking off this work. Partners include: The Governor’s Office of Early Childhood and Development, INCCRRA, Illinois Action for Children, Ounce of Prevention and GOAEYC. We are 1/5 states to be selected for the grant. There was a total of 18 proposals submitted. Both CCRR’s and AEYC’s nationwide were eligible to submit for the grant. We have a detailed workplan and budget to follow. Work will begin May 15th and conclude September 15th. More details will be forthcoming as we kick off this work.