Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE)

We’ve got some exciting news! 

On Monday, February 5, 2024, Robins Foundation will begin accepting grant applications from nonprofit organizations focused on early childhood care and education (ECCE). This is our first of two ECCE grant cycles in the 2024 calendar year. The second will be announced in July.

As you may remember, this is the second full year that Robins Foundation will be investing more narrowly into early childhood care and education (ECCE), a strategic direction that will allow us to provide more funding and support to organizations helping meet the ECCE needs in our community.

We know the impact investing in early childhood education can have. It has the power to change the trajectory of individual lives and the futures of entire families, as well as deliver significant returns for the community that enhance our region as a vibrant and attractive place to live.

The early education funding provided by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) expired last September. While Virginia leveraged additional resources through strategic partnerships to continue providing support in 2024, a fiscal cliff is approaching, and Robins is committed to investing more in this critical area.

As federal funding dries up, providers will have trouble hiring and retaining staff, available slots will be reduced, and parents in the workforce will have to pay more or keep their child at home. And while we expect additional ECCE investment in the state budget, major gaps remain.

We believe that philanthropy can play a crucial role in addressing these gaps. With this in mind, we are eager to partner with you during such a critical time and appreciate your commitment to early childhood care and education. 

Our grant amounts will begin at $25,000, and we will prioritize programs and initiatives that promote exceptional learning environments, positive adult-child interactions, sustainable workforce development, and advocacy efforts.

The final deadline to submit your application is Friday, March 8, 2024.

Please note the mandatory pre-application conversation with our program officer, Meg Pienkowski, must be completed by Friday, February 9, 2024.

Key Focus Areas

For children to thrive, they need access to early, high-quality care and educational experiences, as well as families that are supported and engaged.

These factors influence children’s brain development, school readiness, and long-term wellbeing, so we fund projects in three focus areas: 

• Provider support & infrastructure for early care and education
• Parenting support & engagement
• Early childhood policy & advocacy

Eligibility Requirements
Eligible projects and organizations include those that:

• Primarily support children and their families during prenatal stages through age 5 
• Serve community members in Richmond City, Chesterfield, Henrico, and/or Petersburg
• Qualify as 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations

Which organizations and projects are not eligible?
Proposals are ineligible for funding if they exclusively focus on:

• Travel to conferences or other events  
• Budget shortfalls or cash flow issues  
• Capital investments
• Religious-based curriculum and/or admissions practices   

If your nonprofit is currently receiving Robins Foundation support through December 2024, we request that you wait until our next grant cycle to apply. Any questions about your eligibility can be directed to grants@robinsfdn.org.

We’re eligible! How do I apply?

Please complete these steps in order.

NOTE: If you plan to apply for the same project or initiative Robins Foundation funded in June 2023, you do not need to submit the pre-application questionnaire and can proceed directly to step two below. 

1. Submit a short pre-application questionnaire (linked here). Once submitted you will be able to schedule a call with our program officer. Deadline: February 7, 2024

2. Use this link to schedule a 30-minute phone conversation with our program officer. Please schedule early, as slots fill up quickly. January 29 – February 9, 2024

3. Complete a full application in our online grants system (linked here). Complete this step only after your pre-application conversation. Deadline: March 8, 2024

4. Grant decisions and notifications. Early June, 2024

If you have any questions, or if you need to remove a contact from your organizational profile, please reach out to us at grants@robinsfdn.org. We wish you the best of luck with your application.

Robins Foundation’s Board recently approved grants to 18 organizations working in early childhood care & education for our second and final grant cycle of 2023.

Grants in this cycle prioritized programs and initiatives that promote exceptional learning environments, positive adult-child interactions, sustainable workforce development, and enhanced advocacy efforts.

Children thrive when they have access to early, high-quality childcare and educational experiences, and families that are supportive and engaged. Each supports children’s brain development, school readiness, and long-term wellbeing, so we address these efforts by funding projects in three focus areas: 

• Provider support & infrastructure for early care and education
• Parenting support & engagement
• Early childhood policy & advocacy

We are excited to announce that the following organizations received grants in this cycle: 

• Anna Julia Cooper School for Tuition support for Pre-K (4-year-old) children
• Autism Program of Virginia Inc TAP-VA Inc for Preschool Inclusion Program
• Chesterfield Education Foundation for Chester Early Childhood Learning Academy
• Children’s Assistive Technology Service for Early Access to Assistive Technology
• City of Richmond Public Library Foundation for RVA Reads in Nontraditional Childcare
• Family Lifeline for Growing Well Home Visiting
• Fulton Montessori School for Stabilization of Early Childhood Education Provider in Fulton Hill
• Greater Richmond SCAN (Stop Child Abuse Now) for Circle Preschool Program (CPP)
• Henrico Education Foundation Incorporated for Virginia Early Learning Partners
• Medical Home Plus Inc. for Individualized Education Program (IEP) Advisory Services for Low Income Families of Children with Disabilities
• Reach Out and Read Inc. for Reach Out and Read – Greater Richmond Initiative
• Richmond Performing Art Alliance for Baby Artsplay!™
• Science Museum of Virginia Foundation Inc for Early ExpLORE at LightPlace 
• St. James’s Children’s Center for Building Competency that Lasts a Lifetime and Spans Generations
• Virginia Down Syndrome Association for Interactions across Abilities
• Virginia Foundation for Community College Education for College Attainment for Parents of young children
• Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy for Early Childhood Policy and Advocacy
• VPM Media Corporation for “The Earliest Years Matter” public awareness campaign

“These organizations lead critical efforts to advance childcare access and quality, advocate for early childhood-focused policy change, and empower and equip families to support their children’s early development and education,” says Robins Foundation President & CEO, Chris Chin. “We are excited to both expand and deepen our investments and partnerships in the early childhood sector with our next grant cycle that will launch in January 2024.”

On Monday, July 31, 2023, Robins Foundation will start accepting grant applications from nonprofit organizations focused on early care and education (ECE). This is our second and final ECE grant cycle of the 2023 calendar year.

ECE grants in this cycle will range from $25,000 to $150,000, and will prioritize programs and initiatives that promote exceptional learning environments, positive adult-child interactions, sustainable workforce development, and advocacy efforts.

If you are a nonprofit childcare provider and wish to apply for funding of less than $25,000, please apply through our nonprofit Supporting Early Education and Development (SEED) opportunity.

Deadlines:

The final deadline to submit your application is Friday, August 25, 2023.

Please note that the mandatory pre-application conversation with our program officer, Meg Pienkowski, must be completed by Friday, August 4, 2023.

Key focus areas:

For children to thrive, they need access to early, high-quality care and educational experiences, as well as families that are supported and engaged.

These factors influence children’s brain development, school readiness, and long-term wellbeing, so we fund projects in three focus areas: 

• Provider support & infrastructure for early care and education
• Parenting support & engagement
• Early childhood policy & advocacy

Eligibility Requirements:
Eligible projects and organizations include those that:

• Primarily support children and their families during prenatal stages through age 5 
• Serve community members in Richmond City, Chesterfield, Henrico, and/or Petersburg
• Qualify as 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations

Which organizations and projects are not eligible?
Proposals are ineligible for funding if they exclusively focus on:

• Travel to conferences or other events  
• Budget shortfalls or cash flow issues  
• Capital investments
• Religious-based curriculum and/or admissions practices   

If your nonprofit is currently receiving Robins Foundation support through June 2024, we request that you wait until our first grant cycle in 2024 to apply. Any questions about your eligibility can be directed to grants@robinsfdn.org.

We’re eligible! How do I apply?

Please complete these steps in order.

NOTE: If you plan to apply for the same project or initiative Robins Foundation funded in September 2022, you do not need to submit the pre-application questionnaire and can proceed directly to step 2 below. 

1. Submit a short pre-application questionnaire. Once submitted you will be able to schedule a call with our program officer. Deadline August 2, 2023

2. Use this link to schedule a 30-minute phone conversation with our program officer. July 24 – August 4, 2023

3. Complete a full application in our online grants system. Complete this step only after your pre-application conversation. Deadline: August 25, 2023

4. Grant decisions and notifications. Early December 2023

If you have any questions, or if you need to remove a contact from your organizational profile, please reach out to us at grants@robinsfdn.org. We wish you the best of luck with your application.

For children to thrive, they require access to high quality early childhood education, care, and experiences. Early childhood systems and opportunities are crucial for our children’s cognitive development, school readiness, and lifelong wellbeing and happiness. However, challenges like the nation’s childcare crisis put access to these formative experiences at risk. 

Robins Foundation’s Early Childhood grants aim to support organizations building the infrastructure and programs that will help set our children up for lifelong success. They also lay the groundwork for the continued growth and success of our region by caring for our future leaders, innovators, and workforce. 

In keeping with Robins Foundation’s vision of a vibrant Richmond, investing in our region’s young children provides long-lasting and sustainable community impact. To that end, we are pleased to announce the following grantee partners for our first early childhood-focused grant cycle of 2023.

Children’s Museum of Richmond 

Childsavers  

Communities in Schools of Petersburg  

Healthy Heart Plus II, Inc.  

Little Hands Virginia, Inc.  

Nurture  

Read to Them, Inc.  

Sacred Heart Center 

Save the Children Federation, Inc.  

Smart Beginnings Southeast  

SOAR 365  

United Way of Greater Richmond  

Virginia Association for Infant Mental Health  

Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation  

Virginia Literacy Foundation  

Virginia Repertory Theatre  

Voices for Virginia’s Children  

Young Men’s Christian Association of Greater Richmond  

“Whether through professional development, policy and advocacy, family empowerment, or  increased access to quality programs, every one of these organizations is providing critical programs and services that help our children build a firm foundation that will last a lifetime,” says Robins Foundation President & CEO, Chris Chin. “We are proud to invest in these organizations and their efforts to support early childhood education and well-being in our region.”

We’ve got some exciting news! 

We are now accepting grant applications from nonprofit organizations focused on early care and education. 

Our grants will range from $25,000 to $150,000, and we will prioritize programs and initiatives that promote exceptional learning environments, positive adult-child interactions, sustainable workforce development, and advocacy efforts. If your nonprofit provides early care and education and wishes to apply for funding of less than $25,000, please be on the lookout for an announcement this spring about a streamlined, childcare provider-specific grant opportunity.

The final deadline to submit your application is Friday, March 3, 2023.

Key Focus Areas

For children to thrive, they need access to early, high-quality care and educational experiences, as well as families that are supported and engaged.

These factors influence children’s brain development, school readiness, and long-term wellbeing, so we fund projects in three focus areas: 

• Provider support & infrastructure for early care and education
• Parenting support & engagement
• Early childhood policy & advocacy

Eligibility Requirements

Eligible projects and organizations include those that:

• Primarily support children and their families during prenatal stages through age 5 
• Serve community members in Richmond City, Chesterfield, Henrico, and/or Petersburg
• Qualify as 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations

Which organizations and projects are not eligible?

Proposals are ineligible for funding if they exclusively focus on:

• Travel to conferences or other events  
• Budget shortfalls or cash flow issues  
• Capital investments
• Religious-based curriculum and/or admissions practices   

If your nonprofit received a competitive grant in June 2022, you are eligible to apply again. If you received a competitive grant in September 2022, we request that you wait until our next grant cycle (opening in July) to apply. Any questions about your eligibility can be directed to grants@robinsfdn.org.

We’re eligible! How do I apply?

Please complete these steps in order. 

NOTE: If you plan to apply for the same project or initiative Robins Foundation funded in June 2022, you do not need to submit the pre-application questionnaire and can proceed directly to step 2 below.

If you have any questions, or if you need to remove a contact from your organizational profile, please reach out to us at grants@robinsfdn.org. We wish you the best of luck with your application.