The Collaboration for Early Childhood, the Oak Park-based nonprofit that connects families of children under five with free screenings, enrollment help and support services, reaches about 3,000 children and families each year as it enters what the organization calls its 25th anniversary year.

The nonprofit was founded in 2002 to fill a gap in resources for families and caregivers of children from birth to age 5, according to a Wednesday Journal profile published Nov. 7. It also supports more than 700 early childhood professionals across Oak Park and River Forest.

Mary Reynolds, a Forest Park resident who has served as executive director since 2023, told the Wednesday Journal that the organization works like a school district for kids who haven't started school yet. Once children reach kindergarten, she said, a whole system exists around them. For kids under five, that system usually doesn't.

"That can be confusing and overwhelming at an already really tender time in a family's development," Reynolds said.

Public funding renewed

The Collaboration's reach grew after 2013, when the Village of Oak Park, Oak Park Elementary School District 97 and Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 approved an intergovernmental agreement to fund early childhood services locally. That agreement led the organization to build out developmental screening, coordinated preschool intake and family engagement programs, according to the Wednesday Journal.

All three bodies approved a renewed version of the agreement during the summer of 2026, according to a Collaboration press release dated Aug. 28. The renewed agreement updates the funding framework and governance structure while continuing the investment that began in 2013. Specific dollar amounts were not disclosed.

Village President Vicki Scaman said in the press release that the agreement supports children and families, strengthens the local economy and helps make Oak Park a place where young families can stay. She noted that early care and education programs employ more than 600 people across Oak Park and River Forest.

District 97 board member Nancy Ross Dribin said the partnership lets the district invest in children before they ever reach a classroom. District 200 board member Jonathan Livingston said the agreement is a way to "invest upstream" in equitable outcomes.

The D97 board's May 26 agenda listed the Collaboration's financial contribution as a discussion item, with action slated for a June 9 meeting. The D200 board's May 28 agenda also included a Collaboration for Early Childhood report.

What families get

All family services are free. Training for professionals is free or low-cost, which Reynolds told the Wednesday Journal helps keep care equitable across community borders.

In a separate year-end letter, Reynolds wrote that the Collaboration helped 383 families navigate local services, participated in 60 community events reaching 1,858 families and screened the eyes and ears of more than 1,200 children. The organization also distributed 139 Baby Bundles, tote bags filled with onesies, diapers, a bath thermometer and caregiving information, to new and expecting families.

Developmental screenings expanded to 36 partner sites across Berwyn, Chicago, Forest Park, Maywood, Oak Park and beyond, up from 24 two years earlier, according to the letter.

The Collaboration offers services in English and Spanish and extends its work through fundraising into neighboring communities including Austin, Berwyn, Bellwood, Broadview, Forest Park and Maywood, according to the Wednesday Journal.

Its office is at 171 S. Oak Park Ave. Families can call the organization's "warmline" at (708) 613-6122 or visit collab4kids.org.