[Imc-newsroom] Champaign-Urbana Classroom "Makeover" Program!

[Alissa Krinsky]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE           

MEDIA CONTACTS

Elizabeth Evans, Illinois Facilities Fund - 312.629.0060

Dave Lundy, Aileron Communications - 312.629.5245                      

 

Illinois Facilities Fund Seeks 

Champaign-Urbana Area Childcare Centers 

to Apply for Classroom Improvement Grants



Champaign area classrooms to be selected for funding and other assistance 

 

June 11, 2004/Chicago, Illinois-The Illinois Facilities Fund (IFF), a nonprofit corporation providing real estate financing, development and research for Illinois nonprofits, announced today that it is seeking Champaign-Urbana area nonprofit early childhood care and education centers to apply for grants to improve their classrooms.  Interested teachers, board members and administrators are invited to attend an information session on Wednesday, June 16th. 

 

This Fresh Spaces for Learning Places initiative is part of IFF's Building Blocks program, a five-year, multi-million dollar statewide effort to help Illinois communities improve the quality of early childhood care. Building Blocks will provide community planning and management assistance, upgrade 125 classrooms, build 40 new classrooms and develop up to five new centers in Illinois communities.  Building Blocks is funded by a grant from the Grand Victoria Foundation.

 

"This is a wonderful opportunity for the childcare community to meaningfully enhance the quality of care for children in the Champaign-Urbana area," says Judy Hartley, Director of Childcare Resource Service at the University of Illinois Champaign.

 

An information session for Fresh Spaces grants will be held Wednesday June 16th 
from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall, 602 West Green Street (Green St. and Orchard) in Urbana.  Fresh Spaces grants are open to not-for-profit agencies that provide care to children under six, serve low-income children and are located in Champaign or in adjacent counties.  
 
 "Children learn better when they're in better classrooms.  Brighter paint, low-noise ceiling and dozens of other details can have a huge impact," says Elizabeth Evans, IFF Director of Community and Government Affairs. "Working together with local community centers, we can significantly improve the learning environment for these children."  

 

On Saturday, October 23rd, at Joliet Junior College, IFF will convene the Building Blocks of Design Conference to bring together nationally-recognized experts in childcare center design and education to help early care professionals formulate better design strategies for more effective facilities.



Applications are due by July 31st.   For more information on Fresh Spaces grants or the Building Blocks of Design Conference, contact Heather Heaviland at 312.596.5118.

 

About Illinois Facilities Fund (IFF)

Founded in 1989, the nonprofit Illinois Facilities Fund (IFF) offers short and long-term lending, real estate consulting and project management, research, technical assistance, advocacy and public education programs for nonprofits serving low income and special needs communities throughout Illinois.  To date, the IFF has made more than 250 loans to 160 Illinois nonprofits and completed over 60 nonprofit real estate construction or renovation projects. To learn more about IFF, consult www.iff.org or call 312.629.0060.
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