Student Parents

Childcare/Child Development 

child-care-development

MDC Childcare Assistance Programs

Community Childcare Assistance Programs

Learn more about community childcare assistance programs.

Working parents who earn low to moderate income and/or are enrolled in school for at least 10 college credits may qualify for childcare financial assistance for children from birth to age 13, through the School Readiness Subsidized Childcare Program.

Requirements

  • Children must live in a low-income family where parent/guardians work or attend school at least 20 hours per week.
  • Gross income must be at or below 150% of the federal poverty for family size.
  • Families must pay a co-payment for childcare. This fee is based on income and family size.

Documents Needed:

The #1 reason a parent does not have a successful appointment is because they do not have the required documents. Your online application will require uploading* required documents, including:

  1. Your child’s birth certificate, passport or government ID
  2. A proof of residence (Examples include: water bill, electric bill, lease, any government document with current address)
  3. Proof of income level and family size (upon application, the Coalition will send you an email requesting the documents you will need for this)
  4. If you are a student: you need a copy of your current official school schedule showing that classes are paid (you can find this in your student MDConnect) and the MDC enrollment verification.

*all documents must be uploaded into one file.

Steps to apply:

  • Step 1. Navigate to the Family Portal.
  • Step 2. If you are a new user, register for an account with a reliable email address and password.
  • Step 3. Log into the Family Portal using your email as the username and enter your password.
  • Step 4. Click the gold button that says, “Apply for School Readiness.”
  • Step 5. Complete the basic information and upload the documents as specified on the Portal.
  • Step 6. Certify the application by typing your first and last name as an electronic signature.

Useful Links

Video Tutorials:

For families that do not qualify for school readiness due to over-income. This scholarship covers families with incomes up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level. Visit the Children's Trust site for more information.

Early Head Start programs support pregnant women and families with children younger than age 3 years. Learn more:

Head Start programs serve children between 3 and 5 years old. These centers are not open during the Summer. Learn more:

Free pre-kindergarten program for ALL 4 and 5-year-olds. Children must be 4 year of age on or before September 1. You can enroll your child in VPK that year or wait until the following year when the child is 5. This is only up until a certain time of the day and does not provide all day childcare (usually until 1:00pm).

Find support for the following programs: 

  • After School Programs
  • Summer Camp Programs
  • Special Needs Programs
  • Family Support
  • Benefits Enrollment
  • The Florida Tax Credit Scholarship (FTC) and the Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options (FES-EO): Available to Florida residents, regardless of household income, who are eligible to attend a K-12 public school.
  • The Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities (FES-UA): Available to students age 3 through grade 12 or age 22, whichever comes first, who have a specific diagnosis
  • Hope Scholarship: available to K-12 grade public school students who have experienced bullying, assault, threats or other violent acts.
  • New Worlds Reading Scholarship Accounts: support your struggling K-5th grade child in becoming a stronger reader. This scholarship can be used for fees related to tutoring and literacy programs along with reading instructional materials, curriculum and more.

Visit Step Up for Students for more information

CDC Developmental Milestones
The CDC’s website offers guidance on child developmental milestones, positive parenting tips, developmental screening, and offers free materials to help you make the best decisions for your child.

Are you concerned about your child’s development?

What is Family Literacy? The essence of family literacy is that parents are supported as the first teachers of their children. Emerging research studies show that Parental involvement in their children's schools influences student achievement, attendance, motivation, self-concept and behavior. Parents who read to their children, have books in their home, exhibit a positive attitude toward school and establish high achievement goals for their children tend to have higher achievers than parents who do not. Engaging families in education is critical not only to a child’s success, but to the entire family’s economic and social well-being.

Here are some free literacy resources!