San Diego Foundation, Dr. Seuss Foundation Award $1.25M to Local Nonprofits to Increase Access to Quality, Affordable Early Education & Care

SAN DIEGO (June 23, 2022) – San Diego Foundation and Dr. Seuss Foundation announced today they awarded $1.25 million in grants to 21 local nonprofits supporting young children, ages 0 – 5, and their families.

“When we invest in early childhood programs, we’re building resilient communities by providing critical support to families and strengthening the local workforce,” said Mark Stuart, President & CEO of San Diego Foundation. “The work of our nonprofit partners will ensure San Diego’s children have the healthy development experiences required to thrive in school and beyond.”

The 2022 Early Childhood Initiative Equitable Opportunities Grant supports nonprofit organizations implementing strategic efforts to build regional resilience by increasing access to high-quality, affordable early education and support services for San Diego’s young children, ages 0 – 5, and their caretakers.

“By strengthening early literacy, we’re ensuring young children have strong learning foundations that will support them in their lifelong educational and career pursuits,” said Jay Hill, Dr. Seuss Foundation Executive Director. “An investment in early education now not only supports our region’s current workforce but is ultimately an investment in the future workforce as well.”

Early Childhood Initiative Equitable Opportunities Grants were awarded to programs that support:

San Diego nonprofits that received grants include:

This year’s partnership between San Diego Foundation and Dr. Seuss Foundation enabled the expansion of the Early Childhood Initiative grant, which includes a focus on supporting early grade-level readiness and access to opportunity by ensuring a strong foundation for literacy in the earliest years. This approach recognizes the connection between educational readiness and social determinants of health, considering whole family health, financial security and access to supportive services in the approach to early literacy and educational readiness.

About the Dr. Seuss Foundation

The mission of the Dr. Seuss Foundation is to be a catalyst for improved literacy, broadly conceived, through strategic partnerships and investments. We envision a world in which all people, animals, and the environment are valued and thriving. Our focus is on improving literacy and learning as these are essential to succeeding in the multi-layered worlds of the arts and humanities, health and well-being, animal welfare, and the environment. To learn more, visit DrSeussFoundation.org.

About San Diego Foundation

San Diego Foundation inspires enduring philanthropy and enables community solutions to improve the quality of life in our region. Our strategic priorities include advancing racial and social justice, fostering equity of opportunity, building resilient communities, and delivering world-class philanthropy to realize our vision of just, equitable and resilient communities. The Early Childhood Initiative supports families with young children, ages 0 – 5, throughout San Diego County by expanding equitable access to high-quality, affordable early education and care. For more than 46 years, SDF and its donors have granted more than $1.3 billion to support nonprofit organizations strengthening our community. Learn more at SDFoundation.org.

Contact

Lorena Nava Ruggero, The San Diego Foundation, lruggero@sdfoundation.org, 619-814-1365

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