W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Post

The CHIPS Act isn’t just about strengthening U.S. semiconductor production, it’s also about breaking new ground by fostering critical collaborations that address workforce needs beyond the lab or fab. One such initiative is the childcare collaboration aimed at making careers in microelectronics more accessible for working parents. Michelle Williams leads the SEMI Foundation's collaborative effort in this space. Balancing career and family responsibilities is a challenge for many, and this forward-thinking partnership highlights the importance of holistic workforce solutions. When we invest in family support systems, we create more inclusive opportunities for diverse talent to enter and thrive in the semiconductor industry. https://lnkd.in/gERNrm3W #CHIPSAct #WorkforceDevelopment #Semiconductors #ChildcareSupport #Inclusion #DEI #Innovation #STEM

As my fellow child care advocates know, a key goal of our work is to bring EVERYONE into the conversation about child care. Policy Equity Group, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the Bipartisan Policy Center, EPIC, Executives Partnering to Invest in Children and many others have been working hard for years to engage the business community around child care as an important policy issue.   Economists refer to the benefits of child care to business as an “externality.” In the transaction between a family and child care provider, one of the main beneficiaries sits outside the transaction: the employer, who gains access to the labor made possible by the child care arrangement. Everyone needs to understand this—businesses, federal, state, and local governments, candidates for office—everyone. This is the foundation of the argument for a stronger child care system in the United States.   We’re seeing progress. The Biden Administration's efforts, particularly the child care requirements included in the CHIPS Act, have accelerated our collective efforts and strengthened our connection with employers in the semiconductor sector.     When you're included in an article about child care in the EE Times | Electronic Engineering Times, you know you're gaining traction. Thanks to Michelle Williams of the SEMI Foundation, who is highlighted in the article and an incredible advocate for the child care sector, and to partners like Jon-Paul B. at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Katherine Beckmann, PhD, MPH of the The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, our efforts are really starting to bear fruit. 

Here is proof that if you want to kickstart action you need a powerful incentive. The CHIPS Act is already starting to make an impact for semiconductor companies and the Child Care industry. The CHIPS Act will enable the United States to produce 20% of the world’s semiconductor chip supply by the end of the decade. But in order to tap into the funds, manufacturers are required to provide access to Child Care. That means "not only adequately resourcing the effort, but also ensuring that the programs being offered are safe and high-quality, that there are enough early educators willing to work at the wages being offered, and that tuition prices are affordable for families". Check out the story to see the impact it is already making. TOOTRiS is already partnering with some of the companies listed to provide a turn-key Child Care Benefit program and increase capacity. #ChildCareBenefits #CHIPSAct #semiconductormanufacturing https://lnkd.in/gGtFqsK3

❤️ this idea for knitting a community together: placing young and old together in conversation groups: • reduce loneliness • reduce polarization • learning from different experiences • get to know strangers in the community • a stronger community It kind of reminds me of Blue Heron Foundation's mentorship program (in Romania & Moldova), where mentors offer career and life advice to the college-aged mentees, who have often been orphans (meaning w/out access to adult guidance). The help can end up being reciprocal, because the young people have bright ideas of their own, and in the case of children who come from difficult backgrounds, a tenacity for a positive outlook/ survival instinct or strength.

Great segment about the real concerns to early care and education in North Carolina (and across the country). The speakers (Iheoma Iruka, CANDACE WITHERSPOON, Anna Gassmon-Pines) did a great job laying out the past and current issues we are facing with a "broken" ECE system and presenting some options for future changes. https://lnkd.in/eDKcGsS5

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Approximately 20% of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) employees have had children since being assigned to Arizona. Over 1,000 engineers from Taiwan and their families have moved to the US since the Arizona plant held a ceremony in December 2022 for the first batch of semiconductor equipment. Reports surfaced by employees that TSMC wives had given birth to “American babies,” with hundreds born within two years. TSMC has not disclosed the number of employees giving birth in the US. However, China Times reported that Taiwanese employees have given birth to over 200 American babies, with some families having a baby every year. Liberty Times reported that local overseas Taiwanese communities said there is a growing number of TSMC employees giving birth in the US, with around 20 cases per month. Some TSMC wives have formed chat groups to share childbirth and childcare experiences and resources. In 2022, BBC explored reasons TSMC engineers were willing to relocate their families. Three young engineers interviewed admitted their goal was to create a safety net for the next generation. https://lnkd.in/ga9H5Txj

High cost, limited options, and concerns about safety, quality, and logistics are among the top concerns for parents searching for child care and early education. This new report from OPRE, NORC at the University of Chicago and Urban Institute shares details on how parents look for and select care, highlighting areas for future research. Read more from Heather Sandstrom, Catherine Kuhns, Sarah Prendergast, Teresa Derrick-Mills, MPA, PhD, and Laura Wagner:

What policies and questions for early care and education do you think will bubble up in 2025?

We’re excited to kick off today’s launch of research funded by Nuffield Foundation on early education entitlements. Joining us are Ivana La Valle, Jane Lewis of THE CENTRE FOR EVIDENCE AND IMPLEMENTATION, Claire Crawford of UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities (CEPEO), Maryam Makki of Reading Borough Council and Alison Morton of the Institute of Health Visiting (iHV).   The report reveals the multi-level barriers that make it hard for families to take up early education entitlements, and what can be done nationally and locally to change this.   The panel discuss the systemic issues preventing parents from taking up their funded entitlement, the variations in take-up across local authorities, and how local action can support parents in accessing their entitlements. The report investigates the changes in national policy, local authorities' work, and how early education settings provide the entitlements that will make early education more accessible to the families and children that stand to gain the most.    Explore the findings and recommendations: https://lnkd.in/ec9_89vB

Do you care about early educator and child care provider well-being? My colleague, Annie, and I wrote this new research highlight as a primer about the ways to think about well-being for the ECE workforce. The highlight gives examples of recent initiatives to improve physical and mental health, offer a better work environment, and improve compensation. Please share!