PRESS RELEASE: Birth to Five Illinois Awards Additional $2.5 Million to Early Childhood Collaborations
PRESS RELEASE
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For more information, contact:
Maggie Koller (she/her)
Communications Manager
(309) 233-0434
mkoller@birthtofiveil.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 14, 2025
BIRTH TO FIVE ILLINOIS AWARDS ADDITIONAL $2.5 MILLION TO EARLY CHILDHOOD COLLABORATIONS
Statewide Investment Covers 35 Illinois Regions
Birth to Five Illinois continues to direct funding to Local Early Childhood Collaborations across Illinois to support their efforts to improve Early Childhood systems for young children and their families.
The award of 43 subcontracts in fiscal year 2026 (FY2026), funded by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), brings the total Birth to Five Illinois has invested since FY2023 to $11,875,000. To date, the organization has provided funding to 35 of Illinois’ 39 Regions, demonstrating their commitment to not only bolstering the State’s existing Early Childhood Collaborations, but also to allocating dollars to parts of Illinois that tend to see less investment.
Using these funds, Early Childhood Collaborations like iGrow of Vermilion County and the Carbondale Early Childhood Impact Table will coordinate efforts to increase developmental screening opportunities for young children and collaborate with other organizations in their communities to ensure families can access the programs and services they seek for their children.
“I am honored to announce our fourth year of directing funding to Early Childhood Collaborations across the State,” said Angela Hubbard-Fragozo, Grants and Relationship Manager for Birth to Five Illinois. “These funds support critical relationship-building efforts, updates to resource banks, outreach to families to connect them to available services, and so much more. Birth to Five Illinois is proud to be part of a state that values and invests in efforts that center the experiences of families and communities.”
Birth to Five Illinois FY2026 Subcontractors
Addison Partners for Play, Learning, and Education (APPLE): $48,000
Altgeld-Riverdale Early Learning Initiative (ARELI): $40,000
Boone County Maternal Child Health (MCH) Advisory Council: $75,000
Carbondale Early Childhood Impact Table: $45,000
Champaign County Home Visiting Consortium: $72,000
Clay County 0-5 Advisory Board: $36,000
Collaboration for Early Childhood: $75,000
Connect Home Visiting Chicago: $75,000
Crawford County Kids Association: $64,000
DeKalb County Collaborative for Young Children (DCCYC): $75,000
Early Childhood Alliance of Niles Township: $75,000
Early Childhood Coalition of the Illinois Quad City Area: $60,000
Early Childhood Forum of Central Illinois: $75,000
Effingham County Early Childhood Coalition: $36,000
Enriching Partnerships for Early Learning (EPEL): $75,000
Evanston Early Childhood Council: $72,000
Glenbard Early Childhood Collaboration: $75,000
Greater East St. Louis Early Learning Partnership: $75,000
Greene County Collaboration: $30,000
iGrow of Vermilion County: $50,000
Little Village Education Collaborative (LVEC): $60,000
Madison County Alliance of Children & Families: $60,000
Margaret F. Lee Violence Prevention & Intervention: $30,000
Menard County Family Collaborative: $53,000
Monroe Randolph Partnership for Children and Families: $55,000
North Chicago Early Childhood Collaboration: $51,000
North Lawndale Early Learning Collaboration: $75,000
Northwest Illinois Early Childhood Consortium: $38,000
Plano Area Alliance Supporting Student Success (PAASSS): $66,000
Ready to Learn: $49,000
Ready. Set. Grow.: $75,000
Regional Office of Education #13 Early Childhood Education: $45,000
ROE26 IRIS Community Collaboration: $45,000
Sauk Valley STARS: $75,000
Southern Illinois Coalition for Children and Families: $75,000
Southernmost Illinois Early Learning Special Education Collaborative: $43,000
SPARK (Strong, Prepared And Ready for Kindergarten) Early Childhood Collaboration: $51,000
Success By 6: $38,000
The Village Early Childhood Collaboration: $75,000
Villa Park Area Early Childhood Collaborative: $44,000
WeGo Together for Kids: $63,000
Wheaton Warrenville Early Learning Collaborative: $32,000
Willowbrook Community Early Childhood Collaborative (WCECC): $74,000
Learn more at: www.birthtofiveil.com/funding.
View a short video with Angela Hubbard-Fragozo on YouTube.
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About Birth to Five Illinois
Birth to Five Illinois’ mission is to create a statewide regional infrastructure that will amplify input from communities in the development of policies and funding priorities. We support the mobilization of communities to build and sustain equitable access to inclusive, high-quality early childhood services for all children and families in the state of Illinois.