Equity from the Start: Data to Improve Community Conditions Shaped by Structural Racism

High quality early education and care (EEC) ensures “equity from the start” by allowing families to work while also providing infants and young children with enriching environments for brain, body, and social development. The Child Opportunity Index (COI) centers equity and makes structural racism visible by measuring and mapping the conditions and quality of resources at the neighborhood level. Three neighborhoods in Worcester (Vernon Hill, Bell Hill, and Main South) have Very Low COI scores as compared to other zip codes in the city and Massachusetts. These three neighborhoods also have the highest number of infants born and the largest waitlists for subsided EEC vouchers in Worcester, making them “EEC Deserts” and a clear racial and economic justice issue. Working with Together for Kids Coalition and Edward Street Child Services, this project seeks to answer the following questions: (1) What factors drive the persistence of EEC deserts in the Vernon Hill, Bell Hill, and Main South neighborhoods? (2) What resources do families in these neighborhoods rely on to take care of their young children? (3) What barriers do families face when attempting to access formal EEC? (4) What are the systemic barriers to providing EEC in these three neighborhoods? The resulting Data Dashboard will be used by Worcester’s Governance Council for Children, Youth, and Families and other stakeholders to: (1) link to statewide EEC advocacy efforts such as Common Start; (2) bring needed partners to the table; and (3) create solutions that fill EEC gaps in licensable and sustainable ways.