PDG Newsletter April 10, 2024 Dream Up! Grant Program Evaluation Now Available Project Growth is one of many initiatives DCF introduced to stabilize our communities’ child care systems and boost Wisconsin’s economy. As one of its grant programs, Dream Up! provided funding and strategic planning guidance to support child care supply-building through a collaborative community approach. After awarding a couple of cohorts of recipients, DCF partnered with KW2 to conduct an evaluation. Early findings were released in October 2022, and the final reports for the Dream Up! grant program are now available as well. Access each report below: Project Growth Overview Dream Up! Mini Report Dream Up! Full Grant Program Report Transitions Research Available In the fall of 2022, the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF) contracted with the Co-Create team of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies (the CommNS) on the Early Childhood Transitions Project. The goal of this project was to understand how communities can better support families as they go through transitions in the early years (prenatal through age 8). They did this by learning from current, promising practices and well-aligned systems in Wisconsin. The project was funded by the Preschool Development Grant (PDG) and completed in December 2023. The reports from this project are now available in the PDG Sandbox and at the links below: Executive Summary Eight Case Studies ECHC Expansion – Dane County The Early Childhood Health Consultation (ECHC) is a free program to support best health and safety practices within early childhood care settings. It is in partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF), housed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Human Ecology, and funded through the Preschool Development Grant (PDG). Currently, the ECHC program offers ongoing guidance, statewide, through our resource library, monthly webinars, and a fun, informative podcast. In addition, tailored health consultation services are now available to early childhood care and education providers in Dane County. Preview all health consultation service locations on the Impact Map Learn more about the ECHC program, services, & health consultation service locations on their website.
