ALL OUR KIN INC
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Mission Statement
All Our Kin, Inc., is a nationally-recognized, Connecticut-based nonprofit organization that trains, supports, and sustains community child care providers in order to ensure that children and families have the foundation they need to succeed in school and in life.
About This Cause
All Our Kin’s Mission and History: All Our Kin trains, supports, and sustains family child care providers to ensure that children and families have the foundation they need to succeed. We invest in children’s first teachers, offering a teaching and learning model that supports child care providers at every stage of their development. Through All Our Kin’s programs, family child care providers get the resources, training and support that they need; these providers then make it possible for parents to succeed, providing reliable, consistent care that is affordable, accessible, neighborhood-based, culturally diverse, and flexible for parents working nontraditional hours. By raising the quality of care in these home-based programs, All Our Kin helps give our youngest and most vulnerable children the early learning experiences that will prepare them to succeed in school and in life. All Our Kin is rooted in a fundamental belief: children deserve equality of educational opportunity. Tragically, that equality does not exist in our country, or in our state. There are significant disparities in school success between rich and poor children, and between white children and children of color. These disparities, sometimes called the achievement gap, are especially high in Connecticut: our state’s achievement gap, in fact, is the largest in the nation. This is why our work is so crucial. The achievement gap doesn’t start when a child enters kindergarten unready to learn and without the necessary skills to succeed; it begins in infancy when parents and providers are unable to offer high-quality learning experiences, interactions, and healthy, stable, dependable relationships. These children are being denied crucial opportunities to develop the skills and competencies needed for success in school and in life: independence, self-regulation, empathy, creativity, curiosity, and eagerness to learn. At All Our Kin, we find the caregivers who serve our youngest and most vulnerable children: women in low-income communities who are committed to giving children high-quality learning experiences. We invest in these caregivers, helping them become skilled early childhood educators, and creating sustainable programs that will serve families for years to come. The model is win-win-win: child care providers build better lives for themselves and their own families; parents can succeed in the workforce, knowing that their children are well cared for; and most important, children have equality of opportunity, and the chance to succeed. Our track record: All Our Kin has a proven track record of success in raising the quality and availability of child care in low-income communities: All Our Kin increases the supply of quality child care in the community. Between 2000 and 2007, Connecticut lost nearly 32 percent of its family child care programs. This translates into 7,500 fewer child care spaces for Connecticut’s families. In New Haven, thanks to All Our Kin’s efforts, the number of licensed family child care programs increased by nearly 27 percent during the same period. The result: more available, affordable quality choices for children and families. All Our Kin makes it possible for parents to enter the workforce. Child care is a major barrier to employment for parents, particularly single mothers. All Our Kin's licensed family child care providers make it possible for parents to succeed, providing reliable, consistent care that is affordable, accessible, neighborhood-based, and flexible for parents working nontraditional hours. A recent study from the University of Connecticut’s Center for Economic Analysis finds that each provider licensed by All Our Kin enables between 4 and 5 parents to enter the workforce. All Our Kin increases provider revenue and helps providers build better lives for their own families. In a 2011 study of All Our Kin’s Tool Kit Licensing program, the University of Connecticut’s Center for Economic Analysis found that: -Nearly 60 percent of participants reported earning at least $5,000 more the first year after licensure. In the second year, over 45 percent reported earning at least $10,000 more. -After completing the program, 55 percent of graduates were able to pay down debt, 42 percent had opened a savings account, and 31 percent had moved to a larger apartment or house. All Our Kin increases the quality of family child care. Through All Our Kin's child development classes, workshops, and hands-on educational program visits, family child care providers gain a greater knowledge of child development, and learn new strategies for supporting children and families. And providers become part of a wider professional community, with access to resources, information, and ongoing support. Internal evaluations using research-based observational tools find that after taking part in All Our Kin’s program and services, 97% of family child care programs demonstrate significant increases in quality. Investing in All Our Kin has significant macroeconomic benefits. According to the University of Connecticut’s Center for Economic Analysis, every $1 spent by AOK in the Tool Kit Licensing Program, approximately $15-20 is returned to society in terms of increased gross regional product (GRP). Most importantly, All Our Kin’s work helps children build the foundation for lifelong learning and future success. A copious body of research supports the link between high-quality early childhood education and positive educational and social outcomes for children: replacing a low-quality provider with a high-quality one increases a preschooler’s school readiness by 50 percent. The implications of our work are clear: by improving the quality of care in family child care programs, All Our Kin improves educational outcomes and life chances for children. An external evaluator reports: "Our key finding is that AOK has been able to help increase the number of family child care providers in New Haven, their income, and their quality.… Helping providers to build knowledge and skills in child development and implement best practices in their program is one of the most important ways that All Our Kin helps providers to attain better outcomes for children and families." Who we serve: All Our Kin serves a diverse group of low-income parents and providers in greater New Haven and greater Bridgeport/northern Fairfield county. Ninety-eight percent of the providers and parents we serve are female; they range in age from 18 to 70. Approximately 45 percent are African-American, 50 percent are Latina, and 5 percent are white or other. Describing our work, Connecticut Voices for Children explains, "projects like [All Our Kin's] which target family child care providers reach a segment of the population who are particularly in need of workforce development, and who are particularly hard to reach: mainly women with low levels of education, many of whom are immigrants and/or for whom English is a second language." By serving these providers, we are able to reach another population: young and underserved children up to the age of five. Seventy-two percent of the roughly 1,500 children in our providers’ care qualify for Care4Kids subsidies (only available to qualifying low-income families). All Our Kin works directly with over 250 parents and educators, serving over 1,200 children, in greater New Haven, greater Bridgeport, and Norwalk. Our current programs: All Our Kin’s Teaching and Learning Continuum is a model that supports child care providers at every stage of their development, from parents and caregivers to professional educators and businesspeople. The Tool Kit Licensing Program. All Our Kin provides materials, mentorship and support to help unlicensed family, friend and neighbor caregivers meet health and safety standards, fulfill state licensing requirements, and become part of a professional community of child care providers. When a child care provider becomes licensed by the state, we know that the program meets health and safety standards and operates under state supervision. The result: more children in greater New Haven spend the day in safe, healthy settings. Licensing is also transformative for providers. Their earnings increase; they gain pride and professionalism; and they are able to serve more children, and serve them better, with the equipment and training they need to provide safe, educational child care. The Family Child Care Network. The Family Child Care Network offers educational mentorship, professional development, advocacy and leadership opportunities, and a network of relationships with other family child care providers. The Family Child Care Network is a high-touch program built on best practices in early childhood consultation and teacher mentoring grounded in the Connecticut Early Learning Guidelines. A hallmark of the All Our Kin network is the program visit, in which early childhood consultants visit family child cares to lead model lessons, demonstrate new strategies, and reflect with providers on their work. Consultants bring books and materials, professional articles, and curriculum ideas, and offer suggestions to enhance children's learning. Providers in the Network also come together for monthly meetings, workshops and trainings, including Child Development Associate training, and an annual professional development conference. They have access to a “warm line” they can call for advice at any time. All Our Kin offers zero-interest loans and grants, financial management and education training, and marketing and referral opportunities. All services are bilingual. Early Head Start. All Our Kin’s Early Head Start program provides free, quality child care for eligible infants and toddlers in family child care programs in New Haven. These programs are neighborhood-based, culturally diverse, and offer flexible, full-day programming. Statewide Training and Technical Assistance. All Our Kin provides training and technical assistance to agencies, networks, and associations working to improve the quality and sustainability of family child care in their communities.