Home Grown Child Care

A Legacy of Care: Women, History, and the Path to Universal Child Care

Rafael Flores — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 16:00:12 +0000

Before I became a policy wonk focused on early care and education (ECE), I was a History major. I took classes on the medieval period, American postwar political structures, and–my favorite–Soviet Russia. But whatever the topic, my days were consumed with reading about men and the power structures they built. Women’s contributions and experiences are not well represented in the record books…

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Shaping a Sustainable Future: Celebrating Women’s History Month and the Value of Home-Based Child Care

Natasia Hogston — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 18:37:31 +0000

During Women’s History Month, we celebrate the contributions that women have made to every corner of our society and honor their achievements. Among these leaders are the more than 5 million women who form the backbone of home-based child care (HBCC). These women are leading and sustaining a child care system that supports our communities. While less frequently thought of than child care…

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Black History Month and the Enduring Legacy of Community Care

Rafael Flores — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 03:17:35 +0000

Lift Every Voice and Sing, written as a poem by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson Verse 2: Stony the road we trod, Bitter the chastening rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, Have not our weary feet Come to the place for which our fathers sighed? We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come, treading our path through the blood…

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Black Child Care Providers Stand for Respect and Equity

Rafael Flores — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 00:02:20 +0000

It’s been a long, hard winter for caregivers. Cuts to medicaid, steep increases in health insurance premiums, and deportations of immigrants who make up more than 20% of the care workforce have made it even harder for child care providers to keep their doors open when wages are low and stress is high. According to the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), “Child care workers are…

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New National Initiative “Nourishing Care” Launches to Bridge Food and Child Care Justice

Rafael Flores — Thu, 12 Feb 2026 23:40:58 +0000

Today, Home Grown, in coalition with National Black Child Development Institute (NBCDI), National Indian Child Care Association (NICCA) and Colorado Statewide Parent Coalition (CSPC), announced the launch of Nourishing Care: Food Justice in Home-Based Child Care, a new national initiative designed to ensure that Black, Indigenous, Latine, rural, and immigrant children, families, and care providers ... Read more

Home Grown’s Response to the Proposed CCDF Rule: What’s at Stake for Home-Based Child Care

Rafael Flores — Thu, 12 Feb 2026 15:52:22 +0000

For millions of families across the country, home-based child care is not a backup option… It is the care that makes work possible. More than 12 million children are cared for in homes by trusted providers, including family child care educators and family, friend, and neighbor (FFN) caregivers, who offer flexible schedules, cultural and linguistic connection, and deep relationships that families…

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The Policy Window for Universal Child Care Opens in 2026

Rafael Flores — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:44:56 +0000

While I am clear-eyed about the many hardships ahead for home-based child care, I am also excited to step into the policy window we now have for universal child care and to work with our community to help define its trajectory. A policy window is defined as a moment when a policy problem, a policy solution, and a political opportunity converge, creating space to advance a policy that did not…

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Unlocking Nutritional Support: A Potential New Pathway for Family, Friend, and Neighbor Caregivers to Access the Food Program in Colorado

Venette Pierre — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 19:44:06 +0000

Home Grown Study To better support the essential work of Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) caregivers, a recent study by Home Grown, commissioned by the State of Colorado, explored the feasibility of creating a new pathway to extend access to the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). This federal food program provides crucial financial ... Read more

From the Hill to their Homes: HBCC Provider Leaders Share Their Stories with Policymakers During the 2025 August Recess

Venette Pierre — Thu, 16 Oct 2025 17:35:21 +0000

Home Grown believes the most impactful policies are shaped those closest to the work. When making critical decisions that will affect home-based child care providers and the families they serve, policymakers should prioritize listening to and learning from these constituents to ensure their voices are not only heard but centered. Providers and caregivers hold valuable expertise…

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Child Care at Risk: How Federal Funding Cuts—and Government Shut Down— Hurts Families and Home-Based Providers

Venette Pierre — Thu, 09 Oct 2025 15:33:07 +0000

For years, the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) has been a lifeline, helping families afford child care and keeping providers’ doors open; while the program only serves 14% of eligible families, it’s an important federal investment that defrays the true cost of child care which many families cannot afford. During the pandemic, additional federal investments via the Coronavirus Aid…

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