Welcome to ECRC in the News, a collection of media coverage and community stories featuring the Early Childhood Resource Center and the programs, partnerships, and initiatives that support children and families throughout Northeast Ohio. From early childhood education and family support to workforce development and community engagement, these stories highlight the impact of our work and the collective efforts of our partners. Explore the articles below to learn more about how we are helping children, families, and communities thrive.

2026 Stories 

  • SPARK program offers free kindergarten readiness for Akron families – The Plain Dealer (July 28, 2026): Want to help your preschool-aged child prepare for kindergarten? Consider the Supporting Partnerships to Assure Ready Kids (SPARK) program – a free initiative designed to help parents assist their 3- and 4-year-old children prepare for school. Through the program, which is managed by the Early Childhood Resource Center in Canton, parent partners provide monthly in-home visits to children and their parents. Read the full story.
  • Local organization celebrates Disability Pride Month – WKBN.com (July 25, 2026): A local organization is celebrating Disability Pride Month while also bringing the community together through art. Juju Girl Exclusive held a free Creative Art & Expression program with the Early Childhood Resource Center's Boardman office. Participants painted, colored, and made creations while connecting with one another. Read the full story.
  • Barberton Preschool Collaborative targets kindergarten readiness – Akron.com (July 16, 2026):  A growing network of early learning providers, school leaders, nonprofit organizations, and community partners is coming together around the shared belief that every child deserves the opportunity to enter kindergarten supported, prepared, and ready to succeed. The Barberton Preschool Collaborative recently concluded its first year focused on strengthening kindergarten readiness, supporting families, and creating stronger long-term outcomes for children and the future of Barberton. Read the full story.
  • Akron effort to prepare kids for kindergarten showing early results – Akron Beacon Journal (July 16, 2026): A community-wide effort to support child care businesses and better prepare all kids for kindergarten is showing results. Richelle Wardell, Akron's education and health strategist, said the Unified Early Learning System initiative, still in its pilot phase, is accomplishing its goals of increasing enrollment in early learning programs, reducing staff turnover at childcare center, improving quality and strengthening referrals to family resources. Read the full story.
  • Summit County partnership seeks to support fathers, strengthen families – The Plain Dealer (July 10, 2026): Summit County Children Services and the Early Childhood Resource Center has announced a new partnership that aims to help fathers build skills, confidence and stronger relationships with their children. The new initiative places Jamahl Id-Deen, a parent engagement coordinator with ECRC, on-site at Summit County Children Services. In this role, Id-Deen offers fathers guidance and support to stay active and engaged in their children’s lives. The initiative is funded by the Ohio Department of Children and Youth through the Ohio Commission on Fatherhood. Read the full story.
  • Northeast Ohio groups help reconnect fathers with their children, strengthen bonds – The Sound of Ideas (July 7, 2026): For many parents, maintaining a relationship with their children isn't simply a matter of showing up. Divorce, incarceration, financial hardship, and other life circumstances can create distance between parents and their kids. On the "Sound of Ideas," we’re joined by Northeast Ohioans who are working to help fathers overcome those obstacles, strengthen their parenting skills, and build lifelong healthy relationships. Watch the program.
  • Fatherhood program connects Summit County dads with support – Channel 19 News Cleveland (June 23, 2026): A fatherhood program in Summit County is working to help dads navigate custody, child support, and the challenges of being great dads. Jamahl Id-Deen, a fatherhood practitioner with the Early Childhood Resource Center, said his work is focused on helping fathers support their families. Watch the news segment.
  • Child care is a business issue, not a personal challenge – Greater Akron Chamber (June 18, 2026): On June 11, employers, policymakers, and community leaders convened at the Greater Akron Chamber for the Workforce Deep Dive on child care. The goal was simple but urgent: to better understand how child care is shaping our workforce and what it will take to fix a system under strain. From 2023 to 2025, Shift Work Forward partnered with four communities — Akron, Baltimore, Des Moines, and Pittsburgh — to confront this reality directly. Read the full story. 
  • GCP: Child Care Support – Good Community Podcast (June 3, 2026): Maria Spencer from the Early Childhood Resource Center joined the Good Community Podcast for a panel discussion on child care support in our community. Listen to the podcast here.
  • Breaking the Triple Bind: How worker-centered solutions are transforming child care – Shift Work Forward (May 2026): An undeniable truth about childcare in the United States is that the sector is in crisis. It’s unaffordable for many families, inaccessible in many communities, and provides inadequate compensation and career paths for workers — a triple bind that feels nearly impossible to break. Read the full story.
  • Canton Museum of Art, Early Childhood Resource Center team up on family art project – The Canton Repository (May 4, 2026): The Canton Museum of Art and the Early Childhood Resource Center have partnered for a nine-month early learning program Elevate & Create, bringing families together through hands-on art experiences with meaningful opportunities for learning and connection. Read the full story.
  • Valley organization connects families to resources – The Vindicator (January 26, 2026): On a table sat an assortment of items for children’s activities, including a small bottle of glue. The glue, however, was more than merely an adhesive substance for making things stick: It also represented the core mission of the agency in which it sat. Read the full story.

2025 Stories 

  • Cost of childcare in Ohio is skyrocketing. What can be done about it? – The Columbus Dispatch (December 7, 2025): Maria Reyes survived radiation therapy for breast cancer. That was easier than finding reliable childcare for her son, Jack, who has Down syndrome, autism, and is nonverbal. This problem isn’t new. But the solutions are expensive, and no one wants to pay. Read the full story.
  • Stark employers, agencies make childcare a workforce priority – The Canton Repository (December 7, 2025): Companies spend between $8,000 and $16,000 on average to hire and train a new employee, according to Liz Hibbs, director of the Early Childhood Education Alliance in Alliance. It likely costs employers less to contribute toward employees' childcare costs. Read the full story.
  • Summit County partners share plan to boost kindergarten readiness, support child care centers – The Beacon Journal (September 4, 2025): Last school year, less than four in 10 incoming kindergartners in Summit County were considered kindergarten-ready. A community-wide effort is now underway to support child care businesses and to better prepare all kids for kindergarten. Read the full story.