Nebraska Early Childhood Education Endowment Fund
Sixpence Programs (birth to three)

Research has shown that high quality programming is very important for infants and toddlers development. Knowledgeable workers, the number of children in a group, and the ratio of children to caregivers are all important in developing a quality program. The Nebraska Early Childhood Education Endowment Fund, known as Sixpence, requires programs to meet Quality Criteria that ensure children are in settings that will provide maximum benefit for their positive development.

Sixpence programs are either family engagement, center-based or a combination of the two. They are all operated through a Nebraska school district, the district may be partnering with another program to actually provide the early childhood services.

The fund represents Nebraska’s commitment to meeting the needs of children birth to three in the most critical years of development. It is an innovative public/private venture with the Nebraska Department of Education providing $40 million dollars from the Permanent School Fund and another 20 million dollars raised privately. The programs are administered through the Nebraska Children and Families Foundation. Currently funded school districts are in these communities; Alliance, Broken Bow, Crete, Lincoln, Loup City, Macy, Omaha, Plattsmouth, Santee, Walthill, and York.

The Early Childhood Training Center supports infant and toddler practices through links to websites of value, extensive materials available through the media center, identification of membership organizations, training and technical assistance.

For further information on the birth to three Sixpence programs visit singasongofsixpence.org/.