Find Other Help: Early Childhood Education
Preschool Development Block Grant (PDG) Hub Sites
Pregnant and parenting families with young children in need of support and assistance can contact one of the Community Resource Hubs listed below for help with navigating and coordinating a wide array of services and programs – financial supports, food and nutrition, health care, mental health services and other early childhood programs. In addition to their own specific services, the Hub sites can use both the Bridge to Benefits screening tool to help families find public work support programs and Help Me Connect to find other family and early childhood development resources. For more information, contact the Hub nearest you.
Austin Aspires
http://www.austinaspires.org/
Austin Aspires Early Childhood Navigators work with families with children pre-natal through age 5 to address obstacles that may impede a rich early childhood experience. This work includes connecting families to community and statewide opportunities and resources to ensure maximum growth and learning in these early years.
Address: 301 N. Main Street, Austin, MN 55912
Main Contact
Phone: 507- 438-6869
Email: ecnavigator2@austinaspires.org
Spanish Contact for bilingual families
Phone: 507-440-2071
Email: ecnavigator1@austinaspires.org
Growing Up Healthy
https://growinguphealthy.org/
Growing Up Healthy Early Childhood Navigators help families with children under age five (prior to kindergarten entrance) navigate opportunities and resources, including early childhood screening and preschool enrollment.
Address: 1651 Jefferson Pkwy HS 130, Northfield, MN 55057
Email: navigator@healthycommunityinitiative.org
Phone: 507-301-6345
Hennepin County Early Child Collaborative (NorthPoint Health & Wellness)
https://hccmhc.com/community-resources/
The Hennepin County Early Child Collaborative at NorthPoint Health & Wellness connects parents and caregivers of children aged 0-5 to early childhood resources. By collaborating with partner organizations across Hennepin County, the HCECC Hub is able to provide support and resources for childcare, special education, early education screenings and connections to public programs, basic needs, and more.
Address: 1256 Penn Ave N, Suite 5300 Minneapolis, MN 55411
Main Contact: Jess Skjonsby
Email: jskjonsby@npimn.org
Phone: 612-767-9500
Family Resource Centers of Scott County
www.scottcountymn.gov/frc
Family Resource Centers of Scott County are a one-stop-shop for connection to services, resources, information, and support.
Culturally specific service navigation and language access available for LatinX and Somali communities.
Visit our three Scott County Locations for Support:
Shakopee Library -Mondays from 3-7pm
235 Lewis Street S, Shakopee
Jordan Area Food Shelf -Wednesdays from 4-7pm
312 Water Street, Jordan
YMCA @River Valley -Thursdays from 2-6pm
3573 N Berens Road NW, Prior Lake
For more information contact Krystal Boyechko, Family Resource Center Coordinator.
Email: frcinfo@co.scott.mn.us
Call/Text: (612) 708-6935
Guiding Star Wakota
https://guidingstarwakota.org/
Wakota’s mission is to serve any woman, any mother and any family with compassionate care and support. This grant will support efforts to build partnerships through community engagement and provide pregnant and parenting families with mental health services, system navigation and reduced service inequities for families.
Address: 1140 S Robert St, West St Paul, MN 55118
Phone: 651-457-1195
Postsecondary Child Care Grant Program
This program, through the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, helps low income students who have young children pay for child care while they attend classes. For more information, click here.
Child Care Financial Aid
This website can help parents, providers and employers plan how to pay for child care, get information about child care quality, find employer information about child care benefits, and learn about grants, scholarships and more.
Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE)
651-582-8402
ECFE is a public school program that helps to set the stage for parent involvement and children’s success in K-12 education. ECFE works to strengthen families and engage the ability of all parents to provide the best possible environment for the healthy development of their children. ECFE is open to all families with pre-kindergarten children, regardless of income. It is available through almost every school district in Minnesota.
Head Start
218-728-1091
The goal of Minnesota Head Start is to provide comprehensive services to help families living in poverty enhance the school readiness of their young children (birth through 5). Children participate in a variety of educational activities in a safe environment, have healthy meals and snacks, and get connected to medical and dental services in their community. Parents are actively involved in their children’s health and education, receive support to enrich parenting skills, and access needed family services toward greater self-sufficiency. Generally, to meet income guidelines a family has to have an annual gross income under 100% of the federal poverty level. However, there are exceptions and you should contact the nearest Head Start program to find out if your family is eligible. To find out more about the Head Start programs in Minnesota, or find the nearest agency to you, click here.
1-888-291-9811 or 651-665-0150
The network will help you find the child care that best meets your needs. Child Care Aware agencies provide individualized referrals to licensed family child care homes, centers, preschool programs, and school-age programs. For more information about how Child Care Aware can help you find child care that fits your child's and your family's needs, click here. Parents and Child Care Providers are encouraged to call to access services in Hmong, Spanish and Somali.
Lutheran Social Services Kinship Caregiver Education
651-917-4640
Education and support services for relative caregivers across the state.