PHILADELPHIA – PHLpreK, the City of Philadelphia’s initiative to increase affordable, quality pre-K for thousands of children, received $203,500 in grants from the William Penn Foundation and PNC Foundation to bolster workforce development in the early childhood education (ECE) sector.
Local funding will make quality pre-K accessible for 6,500 additional students by 2021; therefore, the need for qualified, well-compensated pre-K teachers will also grow. In response, William Penn Foundation awarded the Mayor’s Office of Education (MOE) a $176,000 grant to have national ECE workforce experts assist in developing a comprehensive ECE workforce development strategy. This funding will help the City increase the credentialed teacher pipeline to meet the staffing demands created by PHLpreK. This consultant will be selected by MOE and will ensure that MOE’s talent development efforts are efficient and grounded in research-based best practices.
“Having well-trained and qualified teachers is essential to providing high-quality education,” said Elliot Weinbaum, Program Director for Great Learning at the William Penn Foundation. “This investment will allow the Mayor’s Office of Education to work closely with national early childhood education workforce experts to establish a system for recruitment, ongoing development, and retention of a workforce that meets the needs of Philadelphia’s expanded pre-K system.”
A $27,500 grant from PNC Foundation was also awarded to MOE to support the professional development of non-teaching ECE staff. A program will launch in January to help pre-K center owners and directors improve their financial literacy skills. When pre-K providers are equipped to blend various funding streams (local, state, federal, and private tuition) for as many children as possible, they are able to improve educational resources for their students and also pay teachers and support staff higher wages. The complex ECE funding landscape can be challenging for many owners and directors to navigate, but this new initiative will help them better understand financial practices that can help grow their businesses.
“Today’s announcement reflects PNC’s continued commitment to early education in Philadelphia and in the regions where we live and work,” said Joe Meterchick, PNC regional president for Philadelphia, Delaware and Southern New Jersey. “Since 2004, PNC has provided more than just financial support to help improve early education. In the greater Philadelphia region alone, employees have combined to record 40,000 volunteer hours through activities that include collecting books and school supplies, even building nine PNC Grow Up Great Libraries in preschools in underserved communities.”
“The City of Philadelphia is committed to increasing quality pre-K, but I’ve always said that we cannot do it alone,” said Mayor Jim Kenney. “Business and philanthropic support is critical to the success of PHLpreK so I’m extremely grateful to William Penn Foundation and PNC Foundation for their continued investment in early childhood education. Both organizations have made contributions to the growth and development of this field for decades, and I look forward to working with them to improve educational opportunities for our city’s youngest learners.”
About the William Penn Foundation
The William Penn Foundation, founded in 1945 by Otto and Phoebe Haas, is dedicated to improving the quality of life in the Greater Philadelphia region through efforts that increase educational opportunities for children from low-income families, ensure a sustainable environment, foster creativity that enhances civic life, and advance philanthropy in the Philadelphia region. In partnership with others, the Foundation works to advance opportunity, ensure sustainability, and enable effective solutions. Since inception, the Foundation has made nearly 10,000 grants totaling over $1.6 billion. The Foundation’s assets totaled approximately $2.3 billion as of December 31, 2015.
About the PNC Foundation
The PNC Foundation, which receives its principal funding from The PNC Financial Services Group (www.pnc.com), actively supports organizations that provide services for the benefit of communities in which it has a significant presence. The foundation focuses its philanthropic mission on early childhood education and community and economic development, which includes the arts and culture. Through Grow Up Great, its signature cause that began in 2004, PNC has created a $350 million, multi-year initiative to help prepare children from birth to age 5 for success in school and life. For more information, please visit www.pncgrowupgreat.com.