Greater East St. Louis Early Learning Partnership

11/02/2026

Nominate an East St. Louis professional, volunteer, or advocate for the 2026 Brenda Crisp Early Childhood Champion Award today! 💫✨

ABOUT THE AWARD:
Brenda Crisp has dedicated her life to nurturing the healthy development of young children. The Early Childhood Champion Award honors her legacy of creating spaces where children and families are loved, cared for, and equipped for success. This award honors an early childhood professional, volunteer and/or advocate within the Greater East St. Louis area that embodies Brenda's nurturing spirit, commitment to quality and relentless passion for improving child well-being.
We plan to honor the recipient at the ELP 2027 Spring Gathering (date TBD).

NOMINATIONS:
The Greater East St. Louis Early Learning Partnership is seeking nominations for the 2026 Brenda Crisp Award. Please feel free to self-nominate or nominate any individual(s) that you think would be a good fit for this award. If you have questions, please email [email protected]

ELIGIBILITY:
To receive the award, a nominee must meet the qualifications listed below. If you are not sure whether the individual meets these requirements, you may complete the form anyway! Staff will review each nominee's eligibility. The selected winner will be contacted directly.
* The nominee lives and/or works in Greater East St. Louis (Cahokia Heights, East St. Louis, Washington Park and/or Fairmont City).
* The nominee has not won the award previously.
* The nominee has made significant contributions to improving lives for young children (birth to age 5) over the past calendar year.

DEADLINE: DECEMBER 11, 2026
Submit nominations at: https://tinyurl.com/BrendaAward2026

10/28/2026

10/20/2026

Have you registered? There's still time! https://bit.ly/4zafdCQ

10/10/2026

🎉 Celebrating another milestone for early learning in East St. Louis!

Congratulations to Rosie’s Kidz Christian Academy on its grand opening! We’re excited to see another early care and education option open its doors to children and families in our community.

Every new center adds to the opportunities available to families as they explore early learning options for their little ones. We’re glad to celebrate this milestone and the continued growth of early care and education in our community.

Wishing the Rosie’s Kidz team much success in this exciting new chapter!

10/09/2026

📣 Early Care & Education professionals: Edcamp is coming up on October 24, and it’s FREE!

We’re thrilled to partner with Nine PBS on a professional development series designed to connect, inspire, and support our ECE community, and Edcamp is the kickoff! ✨

Last year, it was great to see familiar faces from the East St. Louis ECE community at Edcamp. We hope to see you there again!

📅 October 24, 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM
📍 2717 Sidney Street, St. Louis, MO 63104

Enjoy breakfast, free professional headshots, three learning sessions, and lunch.

Register today: https://bit.ly/4yYr5s8

More details about the rest of the professional development series are coming soon. Stay tuned!

10/08/2026

Let’s keep learning and growing together!

We’re excited to share these FREE virtual training opportunities from Prevent Child Abuse Illinois during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Understanding how domestic violence impacts children and families helps all of us become stronger advocates and more responsive supports within our community. 💜

📅 Domestic Violence 101
October 14 | 10:00–11:30 AM

📅 The Effects of Domestic Violence on Children
October 29 | 10:00–11:30 AM

If you work with young children, families, or caregivers, we encourage you to take advantage of these valuable learning opportunities!

Share with a colleague or community partner who may benefit. Together, we can continue building safe, nurturing communities where children and families can thrive.

💜 **October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.**

Domestic violence affects individuals, children, families, and entire communities. Even when children are not the direct target of abuse, exposure to violence can affect their sense of safety, emotional well-being, relationships, and development.

**Prevention starts with creating communities where families have the support, resources, and relationships they need to thrive.** It also means listening to survivors without judgment and helping children and caregivers access safe, responsive services.

In State Fiscal Year 2025, Illinois domestic violence agencies provided more than **621,000 hours of direct services to 52,191 survivors.**

💜 **This October, Prevent Child Abuse Illinois invites you to join us for two FREE virtual webinars:**

📅 **Domestic Violence 101**
October 14 | 10:00–11:30 AM
Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_MHFRXCZnQkGNWZdnxC4aRQ

📅 **The Effects of Domestic Violence on Children**
October 29 | 10:00–11:30 AM
Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_7AMyJ-gBT8e8dgVO19cGDw

🎓 Social Work/Counseling (LCSW/LCPC) and Nursing CEUs are available for each webinar through Lincoln Prairie Behavioral Health Center.

**Together, we can help create safe, nurturing environments where children and families can heal, build resilience, and thrive.** 💜

10/05/2026

💜 Thank you to everyone who joined us for our first Play, Learn, Grow event!

We loved connecting with families, providers, and community partners as we explored early learning options and local resources.

A special thank you to Brightpoint and Birth to Five Illinois – Region 50 for joining us and sharing valuable information with families!

This is just the beginning! We’re excited for more opportunities to connect families with resources, meet providers, and learn more about Early Care & Education programs in our community.

Follow us on social media to stay connected and hear about upcoming events and opportunities!

Thank you for being part of Play, Learn, Grow! We can’t wait to see you at the next one!

09/28/2026

09/25/2026

✨ MARK YOUR CALENDARS & SAVE THE DATE!

We’re excited to celebrate the grand opening of Rosie’s Kidz Christian Academy in East St. Louis!

After years of vision, hard work, and dedication, this early care and education center is opening its doors to families in the community.

🎉 Grand Opening & Open Enrollment!

📅 Saturday, October 10, 2026

Families and community members are invited to come celebrate this exciting milestone, learn more about the program, tour the center, and explore enrollment opportunities.

The opening of a new early learning center adds another option for children and families in the East St. Louis community. We’re excited to celebrate this milestone and the continued growth of early care and education opportunities for local families.

09/23/2026

📣Join us tomorrow, September 24th from 6-7:30 p.m.!

We'll meet at:
601 James R. Thompson Blvd
Building E
East St. Louis, IL 62201

A light meal will be provided!

There is still time to register at: tinyurl.com/PLGSEP2026