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Investing as a Community to Unite for our Children:
The Salina Area United Way Early Childcare Initiative Fund is comprised of money collected from grants, and donations from businesses and individuals. This fund will be used to help childcare businesses in the community to provide quality childcare to those that need it. Initially, this fund will be used to help supplement the wage gap for the centers in Saline County. Centers in the community are currently paying childcare staff wages that are at poverty level – this has caused multiple rooms at the existing centers to close, contributing to the shortage of quality childcare in Saline County. With this fund, centers can apply for grants to help supplement the wage gap, increasing wages to $15 per hour for teaching assistants and $18 per hour for Lead Teachers. The living wage per the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce in Saline County is $15 per hour. The Salina Area United Way will also be working with this fund to look at opportunities for potential renovations and expansion of current centers and spaces in the area.
You can find more information on the Early Childcare Initiative Grant Application HERE.
Sponsor A Local Teacher:
Our Lead Teachers and Teachers' Assistants need your help. On average, our Lead Teachers currently earn about $6,000/year below living wages; our Teachers' Assistants earn about $4,000/year below living wages. We have a large number of Lead Teachers and Teachers' Assistants that need our help.
Now is the time to Unite for our Children and "Sponsor A Teacher". Your sponsorship will help ensure that all of our childcare Lead Teachers and Teachers' Assistants earn a living wage. This will help get our centers fully staffed with quality teachers, resulting in opening more childcare slots.
How Our Fund Has Gained Momentum:
$45,000
from Child Care Aware of Kansas to open a new center in an existing spot to create 39 new slots
$200,000
from the Earl Bane Foundation to sponsor 33 local childcare teachers to ensure that they earn a living wage, helping to keep centers fully staffed
$15,000
from Salina Family Healthcare Center to help sponsor three local childcare teachers, ensuring that they earn a living wage
$6,000
from Equity Bank to help sponsor a local childcare teacher, ensuring that they now earn a living wage
$6,000
from Bergkamp Inc. to help sponsor a local childcare teacher, ensuring that they now earn a living wage
$4,000
from Superior Plumbing to help sponsor a local childcare teacher, ensuring that they earn a living wage
$75,000
from Salina Regional Health Foundation to help sponsor 15 local childcare teachers, ensuring that they earn a living wage
Thank You to ALL of Our Childcare Donors So Far:
Roger & Sissy Morrison
Jason Bergkamp
Corlene Lange