Two child care programs in Haverhill, four in Methuen and one in North Andover are among 150 family child care programs sharing in $2.7 million in state grants to make room to serve more children.
In Haverhill, Nidia Marroquin of Little Friends Daycare was awarded $25,000, while Sinead Coates Lutz, Land of Youth Family Childcare, was granted $19,815. In Methuen, awards went to Arlene Willette, $22,524; Arelys Burgos, $17,360; Yinery Abreu De Pena, $24,880; and Samari Afework, $4,800. North Andover’s Fadia Enright received a grant of $22,300.
“In Massachusetts, we believe every child deserves access to a safe, high-quality early education environment,” said Gov. Maura T. Healey in a statement. “By unlocking these first-ever capital grants for family child care providers, we’re giving these essential educators the resources they need to expand and improve their spaces. This is a smart investment in our children, our workforce and our future.”
The new Family Child Care Capital Grant Program is intended to improves the quality of care provided in the programs’ physical space, and pay for renovations, accessibility improvements, repairs and upgrades to meet health and safety standards and enhance learning spaces.
Awardees receive between $500 and $25,000 to make physical space improvements that strengthen program quality and capacity. Projects include indoor and outdoor infrastructure upgrades to improve space dedicated to programming, HVAC and energy efficiency improvements, emergency repairs, accessibility improvements, installing new program-dedicated equipment like washing machines and refrigerators and security equipment such as cameras and access control systems.
“Early education isn’t just the start of schooling—it’s the cornerstone of lifelong learning,” said state Education Secretary Dr. Patrick Tutwiler. “These grants uplift our commitment to high-quality care for our youngest learners, and empower family child care providers to create environments where developmental growth, inclusion and safety go hand in hand.”
The Department of Early Education and Care and MassDevelopment will be opening a second round of grants next month.