Our Work
Idaho AEYC helps communities build and provide quality early learning programs and opportunities to Idaho’s children through various initiatives.
Get Involved
An organization is only possible with the help and resources from members of our community. If you value early education and want to see quality programming available for all of Idaho’s children, there are a number of ways you can help.
About Idaho AEYC
WHO ARE WE?
We are system builders! We connect the parts, pieces, and players of the early learning system in Idaho to better serve the needs of young children and families, whether they live in a small rural town or a bustling city.
After funding loss, nonprofit group aims to boost early childhood education
Charitable organizations are stepping up to fill a gap in education funding resulting from political wrangling over early-childhood education in Idaho.
To solve the child care crisis, we need understanding. Now is the time to build it.
As one of the most critical services Americans depend on approached collapse during the pandemic, the child care industry finally began getting much-deserved attention. The system in the United States was severely flawed prior to the pandemic, with affordability and access challenges causing women to leave the workforce, fewer professionals entering the field and skyrocketing costs for families.
Can’t find child care in Boise area? Rates are up, centers are closing. What to know
The waiting list for children to enroll at Ten Mile Community Church Day Care in Meridian is too long for Lisa Martello, the director, to count. The day care center has been operating with a shortage of at least three staff members since 2020. The center is also tasked with meeting the growing demand for child care as the population grows. Child care providers throughout the Boise area say there are not enough day care centers to meet the demand.
Early Education Advocates and Partners Gather for Early Learning Day at the Capitol
On Wednesday, February 23, early education organizations from across the state gathered in the Idaho Statehouse for Early Learning Day, an event organized by the Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children (AEYC), to share the work being done to enhance early childhood education within their communities.
Idaho's children and their families deserve real leadership from our legislators
By Beth Oppenheimer | Opinion on Idaho Statesman
Last year, Idaho was the recipient a $6 million annual grant for three years with a focus to improve Idaho’s early childhood education system. This grant was a follow-on to a previously successfully administered grant that allowed local communities to set up their own strategic plans related to early learning. U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch were strong proponents of the grant because it would have directly benefitted Idaho communities.
Treasure Valley parents struggling to secure child care amid daycare staffing shortages
Struggling to find affordable child care? You're not alone.
Finding and securing child care in the Treasure Valley is a lot easier said than done. Many parents are on year-long waitlists, in part, due to staffing shortages.
Read the entire article on KIVI Channel 6.