Family Services of Central Massachusetts, which is part of the Worcester nonprofit Seven Hills Foundation, received $200,000 from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development to run a children development apprenticeship program over the next year or two.
The funding will help FSCM train entry-level workers in child development and classroom management, including those workers with English as a second language; offer an apprenticeship certificate, including national and state credentials; help trainees move onto higher education at local community colleges; and improve retention of child care providers, including offering better wages.
This new initiative is expected to run until June 2022, with the option to continue it to 2023.
In the announcement of the award, FSCM stressed the importance of child care workers, particularly how the coronavirus pandemic exposed the need to provide child care services for young families with workers who cannot do their jobs remotely.
