COLUMBIA — The Child Development Lab at the University of Missouri's College of Education and Human Development announced the launch of "Recruit, Inspire, Support the Early Childhood Profession in Missouri (RISE-MO)" on Thursday.
Aileen Garcia, an assistant professor within the Human Development and Family Science department, said this was over two years in the making.
"In 2023, a group of HDFS faculty led by Dr. (Brenda) Lohman and I wrote a proposal to strengthen and expand the child care work force in the state," Garcia said. "We know that child care and child care workers are a critical part of the workforce."
RISE-MO's website says it wants to build a strong, skilled early childhood workforce, ensuring every child in Missouri has access to high-quality care and learning experiences that lay the foundation for lifelong success.
The Child Development Lab serves as an educational setting for children and is a research laboratory for students, faculty and staff, according to the MU Human Development and Family Science website.
Lohman made the announcement during a grand reopening celebration following major renovations to the lab.
There were numerous speakers, including Lohman, who is the department chair of Human Development and Family Science at MU.
Lohman said RISE-MO is a grant provided by the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development.
RISE-MO's website also said that the organization's mission is to strengthen and expand Missouri’s child care workforce by developing new credentialing opportunities and expanding existing career pathways for early childhood professionals.
Missouri currently faces a child care shortage. A report from Child Care Aware of Missouri from February 2025 shows that 112 of 115 counties in the state are considered "child care deserts," which can be defined as "areas with three times more children than licensed child care slots for children under two years of age."
Lohman said the grant helps the Child Development Laboratory in multiple ways.
"We received a grant that not only let us expand this laboratory and training facility on campus, but truly it was meant to broaden the workforce of the early childhood profession across our state."
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