Overview

The Center for Early Learning Funding Equity (CELFE) developed the Chicago Cost Model Report as part of a three-part project funded by the Robert R. McCormick Foundation to analyze Chicago’s birth-to-five system. The project includes cost modeling, fiscal mapping, and participation analysis to help build a more comprehensive understanding of how early learning and care are funded and delivered across the city.

The Chicago Cost Model Report provides updated estimates of the full cost of meeting the Chicago Early Learning Standards (CELS). The model reflects current market costs for staffing, occupancy, and materials, and identifies the key cost drivers of high-quality early learning programs.

The model is designed to help funders and policymakers understand how Chicago’s major public funding streams—Head Start/Early Head Start, the Early Childhood Block Grant (PFA/PI), and the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)—can work together to build a more equitable and sustainable early learning system.

Learn more by reading the full Chicago Cost Model Report.