Birth to Five Illinois Awards Funds to Local Childhood Programs
October 17, 2025
Original coverage in WREX.com by William McKenna.
Birth to Five Illinois is putting funding toward local programs helping young families.
Early childhood programs Ready to Learn of Alignment Rockford and Maternal Child Health Advisory Council of the Boone County Health Department are receiving a total of $124,000 in Fiscal Year 26 funding. The FY26 funding comes from the Birth to Five Illinois program, an initiative to improve the Early Childhood Education and Care system in Illinois.
Angela Hubbard-Fragozo, Grants and Relationship Manager for Birth to Five Illinois, said the funds would help provide better resources and resource access to families.
"These funds support critical relationship-building efforts, updates to resource banks, outreach to families to connect them to available services, and so much more," said Hubbard-Fragozo. "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."
Ready to Learn, an Alignment Rockford program, received $49,000. The Boone County Maternal Child Health Advisory Council received $75,000.
Birth to Five Illinois awarded $2.5 million total to local early childhood programs across the state. The funds were given as subcontracts to recipients who applied through a Request for Proposal process.
The purpose of the subcontracts is said to be creating equitable early childhood opportunities for kids and families and providing better access to services and resources.
To see the full list of FY26 subcontractors getting funding across Illinois, click here.