News
The Record Northshore March 2026 (bilingual storytime)
“Walk into the Skokie Public Library and you may notice a “hello” message on the walls to the building’s entrances. Displayed in English, Spanish, Chinese, Romanian, Potawatomi, Hebrew, Arabic and more than a dozen other languages, that message is for everyone.
Now, through a partnership with the Niles Township Early Childhood Alliance, the library is reinforcing its inclusive messaging by offering a series of bilingual storytime events this spring in Dari/Farsi, Arabic and Urdu. “
WTTW News ECA Executive Director Tina Vanderwarker - childcare funding freeze
Tina Vanderwarker, executive director of the Early Childhood Alliance of Niles Township, said the Trump administration’s funding freeze will make it more difficult for families to care for their children.
“The families that we are helping in large part need child care for their children so that they can work to afford rent, to put food on the table,” Vanderwarker said. “In many cases, one parent is working full-time or two parents are working full-time. One parent may be taking classes as well, and simply can’t afford to not have both parents working to provide for themselves.”
The Record Northshore Dec. 2025 (funding)
Earlier this month, a group of eight women gathered in a small room behind an unassuming storefront in Skokie and turned their attention to a white board. An instructor was drawing letters from the alphabet to begin the day’s lesson.
The class was designed to help the women — who immigrated to the United States fluent only in Arabic, Dari, Farsi or Spanish — learn to speak English, and it is only one of a number of free programs offered by the Early Childhood Alliance, a Skokie-based nonprofit.
ECA 3rd Annual Fun Fair - Chicago Tribune
An Early Childhood Alliance resource fair aimed to address findings that many Skokie and Niles Township children are not reAft for kindergarten.
Family Support Specialist Alyssa Sartin of the Infant Welfare Society of Evanston engaged with families at the fair, which was held at Oakton College.