ECE Emergency Grants
First 5 Early Childhood Facilities Fund
About the Grants
First 5 is offering funding to help early care and education providers fix urgent issues, and make changes required to care for infants and toddlers
In early care and education settings, spaces matter. Indoor and outdoor spaces that are age-appropriate and in good repair are an essential part of high-quality care. Facilities issues like a roof leak, HVAC repair, or a broken fence can cause safety risks. And they can also be expensive to fix.
Offering care to infants and toddlers also requires upgrades that can be expensive, like creating separate outdoor spaces for younger children, or adding flooring that is safe for infants.
The grants are designed to help child care businesses pay for these repairs and upgrades. Grant awards are:
- Family Child Care providers: up to $150,000 per site. Around 50 will be awarded.
- Child Care Centers: up to $350,000 per site. Around 20 will be awarded.
These grants are funded by Alameda County taxpayers via Measure C, the Children’s Health and Child Care Initiative for Alameda County.
How to Apply
The interest form for facilities funding is part of the Early Childhood Education Emergency Grant application. To be considered for facilities funding, simply complete your application, reply “yes” to the question, “Do you have an urgent facility need?” and answer a few simple questions about your program.
Priority will be given to urgent issues. If you are selected for the applicant pool, we will reach out to learn more about your facilities needs. Outreach will begin in July. Grants will be awarded on a rolling basis through June 30, 2026, and more are expected to be available in future years.
You must meet the eligibility requirements of the Early Childhood Education Emergency Grants to be considered for additional facilities funding. You can receive both.
What Happens Next?
If you applied to the Early Childhood Education Emergency Grant, answered “yes” to having an urgent facilities or infant-toddler conversion need, and you meet grant eligibility requirements, then a member of our team will reach out to you for more information about how we might be able to help.
Outreach will begin in July and continue on a rolling basis.
Projects will be scored based on several selection criteria. The highest scoring projects will receive initial funding. Selection criteria include:
- Urgent health and safety needs that could result in the program’s closure or reduced enrollment.
- Preservation of, or increase to infant/toddler child care spaces.
- Care for children who participate in an Alameda County ECE subsidy program.
- Care for children before 6am, after 7pm, overnight, or on weekends.
- Specialized care for children who are neurodiverse, gifted, have developmental delays, disabilities, or other special needs.
- Specialized care for children who are experiencing homelessness or in foster care.
- Geographic distribution of projects across Alameda County.
- Not previously funded by the California Child Care and Development Infrastructure Grant Program.
