The Southeast Michigan Early Childhood Funders Collaborative (SEMI ECFC)serves as a network for early childhood care and education grantmakers focused on supporting the first eight years of a child’s life. The collaborative comes together to ensure families, providers and communities have the resources they need to achieve a healthy start, promote positive growth and development and optimize success in the 3rd grade and beyond. The core membership includes representatives from:
Ballmer Group
Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan
Max M. & Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation
W.K. Kellogg Foundation
The Kresge Foundation
PNC Foundation
The Skillman Foundation
Michigan Health Endowment Fund
Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation.
Advancing quality, access and affordability of early childhood education and care are at the center of the collaborative’s work. They focus on four key levers for achieving success in these areas: philanthropic funding (individual and pooled), policy advocacy, expertise, and partnerships. SEMI ECFC members are encouraged to propose joint funding opportunities to the group in meetings and in regular update emails. These opportunities can be responsive to the immediate needs of the communities we serve or can help strengthen the early childhood system in the long term.
The SEMI ECFC is also active in the policy advocacy space. The collaborative meets monthly with representatives from the Governor’s office to talk through new public funding opportunities for early childhood in the state and how philanthropy can bolster efforts to ensure the equitable distribution of those funds. These meetings also include a national policy consultant who provides insights on alignment with federal resources.
All of the collaborative’s activities align with principles that center the children, families and communities we serve. If you have questions, please contact Leena Mangrulkar, program manager, lmangrulkar@semichecfc.org.
