Reinvestment Fund Spring Newsletter
Lessons from Ten Years Studying Childcare in Philadelphia
Since 2013, Reinvestment Fund’s Policy Solutions team has been tracking the supply, demand, and shortage of childcare in Philadelphia. What distinguished our approach to understanding the local childcare environment from other “childcare desert” studies was our perspective as potential childcare investors. We developed a complete mapping of the universe of childcare, including that which was not licensed or certified, to reflect all of the choices available in the market. We shared the results of our first analysis on the newly created public website, childcaremap.org, where public officials, families, providers, and educators could learn about the childcare needs in their community.
The findings and conversations sparked by the first report helped lead to the creation of the Fund for Quality (FFQ), an initiative that provides business planning and facility financing supports. With support from the William Penn Foundation and later the Vanguard Strong Start for Kids program, FFQ has invested over $15 million to create more than 3,000 high-quality childcare seats in underserved communities in Philadelphia.
“The most successful childcare funding model would mean that we’ve successfully met the business owner where they are. Understanding the diverse childcare business types and needs, our aim is to offer products that allow businesses to increase their capacity,” commented LaToshia DeVose, Program Director, Early Childhood Education at Reinvestment Fund.
The analysis, published annually, is the basis of Reinvestment Fund’s work to support children and families across the region. After a decade of research, we look back on the largest trends and changes that have impacted the city’s early learning sector and offer lessons about where to focus our efforts over the next decade.
Building Blocks: A Woman-Owned Media and Arts Hub Plants Roots in Baltimore
As the first Black woman in Maryland to literally buy a block on Baltimore’s waterfront, Dr. Vonnya Pettigrew, owner and CEO of Root Branch Media Group, recognizes her role in history. A media mogul, visionary and entrepreneur with a strong track record in creating opportunities for youth, entrepreneurs and creatives, Pettigrew and her team set up shop in their new home with the plans and vision to transform the space into a media and arts hub for local groups and community members to branch out and grow.
Over the last three years, Reinvestment Fund has invested $280 million—45% of our portfolio—to organizations owned or led by people of color. Dr. Pettigrew was introduced to Reinvestment Fund through her finance team and her corporate attorney. According to Dr. Pettigrew, the opportunity to partner with a CDFI made sense, given the social dimensions of Pettigrew’s work. In December 2023, Root Branch Media Group completed the property acquisition with real estate financing from Reinvestment Fund.
As Pettigrew said, “All of us together have a piece in this movement. Together, we are building a community.”
News & Resources
- Welcome to new staff Christina Alexis, Melissa Olive, Tennille Shields, and Colleen Davis.
- Following our newly published report, Mayor Cherelle L. Parker formed the Philadelphia Residential Property Assessment Task Force. Ira Goldstein, Senior Advisor of Policy Solutions at Reinvestment Fund, will Chair the Task Force.
- The Sixth Annual Jeremy Nowak Memorial Lecture titled Economic Opportunity for Everyone: The Role of CDFIs in Advancing and Building Opportunity was hosted by Reinvestment Fund and the Penn Institute for Urban Research.
- Our latest housing research delves into the complexities of housing funding in Philadelphia, offering a comprehensive look at the impacts of public dollars.
- The newly updated Limited Supermarket Access (LSA) Analysis can be used to find and address fresh food gaps in West Philadelphia and beyond.
- The Invest Health Convening in Nashville that brought together 200 peers from small to mid-sized U.S. to embark on a journey that differed from the typical structure of a conference: the participants co-planned the event from the very beginning.
- 10 small and midsized cities participating in the Invest Health Initiative were selected to participate in the City Health Dashboard #DataChallenge.
- The Growing Diverse Housing Developers Convening in Oakland brought Housing Developers and CDFIs from across the country to the table to exchange insights, address common challenges, and explore effective strategies in pursuit of our common goal for housing equity and increased diversity within the housing industry.
- President of Lending and Investments, Christina Szczepanski, discusses our recent findings on the disparities in supermarket access across Georgia and how increased resources in our communities can expand access to healthy, nutritious foods.
- HFFI grantee, the community-owned North Flint Food Market, is addressing food insecurity in North Flint.
- PHL-Child Nutrition Fund awards $400,000 towards supporting childcare businesses that utilize CACFP.
- Mike Norton, Chief Policy Analyst at Reinvestment Fund, joined Virginia This Morning to discuss how an innovative and coordinated approach can address food access gaps in Richmond, VA.
- Reinvestment Fund financing has helped scale a woman-led nonprofit, First Step Staffing, to be one of the largest nonprofit staffing agencies in the country.
- Reinvestment Fund’s Program Director of Early Childhood Education, LaToshia DeVose discussed the important role CDFIs play in supporting the diverse needs of child care businesses—including through research, financing, and technical assistance programs at Treasury Convening of Childcare hosted at The White House.
Grant Opportunities & Announcements
- Fund For Quality: Through the provision of business planning and facilities-related financing, Fund for Quality supports high-quality early care and education providers with expanding their services to reach more low-income families.
- HFFI Planning Grant Program: Reinvestment Fund is inviting applications for grant awards through the Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI) Planning Grant Program, a new program that will provide grants to organizations or businesses for eligible, healthy food retail or food enterprise projects that are in early-stage planning and predevelopment phases.
- New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative: A new grant program that supports community-led, innovative food retail projects that improve access to healthy food and promote economic growth in low-income, underserved areas of New Jersey.
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“Improving food access, economic strength, and resilience for communities across the country requires a multifaceted approach with both national and localized solutions,” said Don Hinkle-Brown, President and CEO of Reinvestment Fund.
The historic public-private HFFI Partnerships Program will enable more than 750 loans and grants over the next five years to support over 1,400 food retail and supply chain projects, sustaining over 2,500 local jobs. View the 2023 HFFI Partnerships Program Grantees award book.
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Work With Us
- Loan Officer (Director), Clean Energy & Sustainable Finance
- Portfolio Manager
- Program Associate, Healthy Food Financing Initiative
- Student Internships