$39 Billion in Relief Funds for Child Care

04/20/2021

$39 Billion in Relief Funds for Child Care

Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear.
Mark Twain

The First Five Years Fund website recently ran a story about major new government investment in child care. Here’s an excerpt:

“This week, Vice President Kamala Harris announced the Administration would be releasing $39 billion in COVID-19 relief funds for the child care industry that passed as part of the American Rescue Plan, offering critical support to help families, including essential workers, access care, while also providing child care providers with critical resources to keep their doors open to serve their communities. During her remarks, Harris spoke about the realities facing child care providers who have been devastated by declining enrollment and increased operational costs created by the pandemic, and how ‘the strength of our country, the resilience of our economy depends on affordability and the availability of child care.’”

Leaders who have been weathering devastating realities and surviving are the kinds of people Rachel Robertson wrote about in the Exchange Essentials article collection, “Courageous Leadership”:

“In the best of times, the question ‘What does courageous leadership mean to you?’ is a tough one to tackle. It seems a little vague and lofty. But in the worst of times, when typical worries become trivial and day-to-day decisions have much more at stake, it is all that matters. In the past months, across this field, I have been fortunate and grateful to witness so many acts of courageous leadership. This is what it has looked like to me...

There is a difference between holding a leadership role and being a leader. Leaders are everywhere, no matter their title. Being a courageous leader requires you to bravely face the grave reality, to marshal all of your resources, and willingly step forward into the unknown so you can do the hard things, go first, and be there to support, coach, empower and cheer on your team each step of the way.

Courage is fiercely holding on to hope, resilience and gratitude.”

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