$168K in Grants Awarded to Eight Ministry-Based Early Education Programs

Early Learning Indiana grants will improve quality and increase access.

As a part of Early Learning Indiana’s mission to increase access to high-quality early educational opportunities, today the Indianapolis-based nonprofit announced that eight ministry-based programs have been awarded a total of $168,790 in grants.

Funds will be used for physical, operational and program improvements that enable the programs to join and advance along Paths to QUALITY, the state’s child care quality rating and improvement system. The voluntary, four-tiered system assesses each provider on health and safety standards, its overall learning environment, the use of planned curriculums and national accreditations.

With these funds, the eight programs will join Paths to QUALITY and reach level three, which is considered high-quality. Early Learning Indiana has made the following grants:

• God’s Little Blessings Early Learning Center at the Calvary Baptist Church in Connersville was awarded $25,000 to expand its fire alarm system, to remodel and expand its infant room, and to create a new preschool room.
• Kids First Child Care Ministry at the First United Methodist Church of Decatur, was granted $23,000 to purchase new curriculum and to add a separate play area for infants and toddlers.
• Little Angels Daycare at Seymour’s Apostolic Pentecostal Tabernacle was awarded $25,800 to remodel an existing restroom and to construct a separate outdoor play area for infants and toddlers.
• St. Peter Lutheran Church and School in North Judson was awarded $3,340 to purchase new classroom materials and to support ongoing training of staff, as well as to cover the costs of background checks for newly hired program staff.
• Saint Therese Catholic School in Fort Wayne was granted $14,050 to install a playground fence and anti-scald valves on hand washing sinks, to purchase new curriculum, and to cover the cost of background checks for new hires and ongoing professional development opportunities for existing staff.
• St. John Catholic Preschool, located at Goshen’s St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, was awarded $23,000 to install a new bathroom and windows, as well as for new classroom materials.
• St. Johns Day Care Ministry, located at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Lanesville, was granted $28,600 to install a playground fence, add a hand-washing sink in its toddler room, and improve lighting. Funds will also be used to purchase classroom materials and to cover the cost of background checks for newly hired program staff.
• The Little Children’s Ministry at Logansport’s First United Church was awarded $26,000 to add a new restroom and to renovate existing restrooms to make them more accessible to children.

Since 2015, Early Learning Indiana has awarded more than $2 million in grants that created 1,500 new high-quality seats throughout the state. Grants like these are made possible thanks to the generous support of the Lilly Endowment and its $20 million in support of Early Learning Indiana’s efforts.