The CCPU Training Fund grew out of a historic partnership between family childcare providers and the state of California. After 17 years of struggle, family childcare providers successfully unionized with Child Care Providers United (CCPU) in 2020. CCPU brought together UDW/AFSCME Local 3930 and SEIU Locals 99 and 521, and negotiated a first contract with the state of California in 2021 that included substantial funding for worker-centered professional development.
CCPU has funded the SEIU Education & Support Fund (ESF) to develop the innovative and worker-centered CCPU Training Fund. Working hand-in-hand with CCPU and the state of California, the CCPU Training Fund has been funded to develop and deliver provider- led trainings on business development and child development, a registered apprenticeship program, a peer coaching support network, hardware needed for providers to access online workshops, and more.
Every step of the way, family childcare providers have been at the forefront of deciding how the CCPU Training Fund will take shape to meet our most pressing needs.
Theory of Change
We believe that family child care providers are in the best position to articulate our professional development needs as educators, business owners, and community leaders. For generations, family child care providers have provided culturally responsive, high-quality early childhood education, often the only setting where children can learn in the language they speak in their homes. The CCPU Training Fund believes that by aligning training resources with the expertise of family child care providers and our knowledge of what the workforce needs to develop, early childhood education as a whole will improve across the state. Family child care providers will be supported to deliver the highest quality education and sustain our businesses. Our children across the state will receive the top-notch quality education they deserve. As a result of our work, we envision that family childcare providers’ expertise will be respected. Respect for our role as foundational early childhood educators will contribute to better compensation and increase retention and resilience in the industry.
