The Virginia Early Childhood Foundation (VECF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, with offices at 1703 North Parham Road, Suite 110. Founded in 2005, VECF operates as a public-private partnership and serves as Virginia's non-partisan steward and capacity-builder for advancing school readiness across the Commonwealth. The organization employs 22 staff members and focuses on ensuring that Virginia's children enter kindergarten healthy and ready to learn.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$13.7M
-31.2% YoY
Annual Giving
$52.4M
+31.3% YoY
Grant Count
9
-73.5% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$5.8M
+396.1% YoY
Mission & Focus Areas
Mission: The Virginia Early Childhood Foundation serves as the non-partisan steward and capacity-builder for advancing school readiness in the Commonwealth.
Vision: Every region in Virginia will ensure equitable opportunities for all families with young children to thrive. Every Virginia child is prepared for school, laying the foundation for workforce and life success.
VECF's work centers on children ages birth to 5, with particular focus on those who do not currently have access to the same opportunities as their peers and could benefit most from high-impact early childhood experiences and environments.
Primary Program Areas:
Smart Beginnings: A statewide network providing strategic leadership and public-private partnerships to ensure every child and family has access to quality child care services. Smart Beginnings serves more than 100 jurisdictions across the Commonwealth.
Mixed Delivery Program: Full-day, year-round child care services for low-income families with children from birth to age 5.
Ready Regions: Regional systems-building initiatives that bring together public and private partners to work collectively toward shared early childhood goals.
Coordinated Enrollment: Streamlined access to child care services.
Family Engagement: Supporting families in systems design and decision-making.
Workforce Development: Strengthening the early educator workforce through initiatives like the School Readiness Committee.
Policy and Practice Innovation: Identifying and addressing barriers to quality early childhood services.
Grantmaking
VECF administers several large grant initiatives focused on improving community and parental capacity to support young children's school readiness.
Ready to take the next step with Virginia Early Childhood Foundation?
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
VECF operates statewide across Virginia, with particular emphasis on building capacity in local communities through the Smart Beginnings network. The organization works with more than 100 jurisdictions across the Commonwealth and has designated Ready Regions throughout the state to coordinate regional early childhood efforts.
Grant Distribution by State
States
Cities
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
2024 Financial Data:
- Total Revenues: $106,099,453
- Total Expenses: $105,613,920
- Total Assets: $13,660,208
- Annual Revenue: $5,836,920
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $13,660,208 | $19,852,383 | $39,759,006 |
| Revenue | $106,099,453 | $69,347,107 | $41,199,281 |
| Expenses | $105,613,920 | $68,621,242 | $40,641,046 |
| Qualifying Distributions | — | — | — |
| Net Investment Income | $3,328 | $1,976 | $574 |
| Distributable Amount | — | — | — |
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 9 recipients in 2024
Grant Size Distribution
91 grants across all recorded years
Open Grants
1 open opportunity from Virginia Early Childhood Foundation
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
No grants recorded for .
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
- Kathy Glazer: President
- Rebecca Tippett: Chief Accountability Officer
- Robin Grossman: Operations Director
- Bridget King: Vice President Operations
- Sharon Brager: Fund Development Manager
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
From 2024 filing
| Name | Title | Hours | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ROBERT HURT | CHAIR EMERITUS | 1 | — |
| RICHARD K BYNUM | CHAIR | 1 | — |
| MIKE CHINN | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| TODD ASBURY | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| THOMAS N CHEWNING | CHAIR EMERITUS | 1 | — |
| JASON EL KOUBI | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| SONYA RAVINDRANATH WADDELL | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| BEN J DAVENPORT JR | CHAIR EMERITUS | 1 | — |
| JAMES DYKE | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| ALEXIS EHRHARDT EDD | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| BILL ERMATINGER | CHAIR EMERITUS | 1 | — |
| DANIELLE FITZ-HUGH | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| AIMEE ROGSTAD GUIDERA | EX OFFICIO | 1 | — |
| BRYAN HILL | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| REGINALD N JONES ESQUIRE | DIRECTOR EMERITUS | 1 | — |
| JOHN LITTEL | EX OFFICIO | 1 | — |
| NED W MASSEE | CHAIR EMERITUS | 1 | — |
| CAREN MERRICK | EX OFFICIO | 1 | — |
| TODD NORRIS | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| XAVIER R RICHARDSON | TREASURER | 1 | — |
| SHANNON RUDISILL | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| GARY THOMSON | VICE CHAIR | 1 | — |
| JAMELLE S WILSON | SECRETARY | 1 | — |
| EDMOND E HUGHES | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| BERGEN NELSON | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| KATHRYN V GLAZER | PRESIDENT | 40 | $240,608 |
Recent News & Activity
Recent developments and announcements
VECF has been active in several major initiatives:
**Federal Preschool Development Grants:** The organization helped secure Virginia's initial $70 million federal grant for pre-K expansion and reform and continues to serve in leadership roles with ongoing federal preschool development grants.
Virginia Receives $9.9 Million Federal Preschool Development Grant to Unify**Legislative Advocacy:** VECF influenced the creation of a joint legislative subcommittee to examine reform of Virginia's pre-K program and was named in the legislation to bring resources to that effort.
**Ready Regions Designation:** VECF announced the designation of Ready Region lead agencies to coordinate regional early childhood systems-building work.
Virginia Early Childhood Foundation Awards $37M in Regional Mixed Delivery**Equity Focus:** The organization convenes Smart Beginnings leaders across the Commonwealth to explore strategies ensuring equitable access to quality early childhood services and experiences for all children, with particular attention to analyzing data to understand disparities in early childhood access and outcomes.
Virginia Early Childhood Foundation Awards $37M in Regional Mixed Delivery**Contact Information:**
Phone: (804) 358-8323
Website: www.vecf.org
Email: info@vecf.org
Subject Areas
Focus areas based on grantmaking activity
Related Funders
Similar funders by location and focus area
Wolf Family Charitable Trust
OAKTON, VA
Assets
$385K
Grants
5
Total Given
$189K
Stone Ridge Foundation
ALTAVISTA, VA
Assets
$6.4M
Grants
2
Total Given
$15K
Lawrence and Ira Straus Charitable Tr
ARLINGTON, VA
Assets
$236K
Grants
12
Total Given
$8K
Iraqi Children Foundation Inc
FAIRFAX, VA
Assets
$101K
Grants
2
Total Given
$610K
Mjh Foundation
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA
Assets
$46.5M
Grants
1
Total Given
$1.9M
The Roth Family Foundation
ARLINGTON, VA
Assets
$67K
Grants
1
Total Given
$25K
Data last updated April 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.
What could you do with Virginia Early Childhood Foundation on Grantable?
- Assess strategic fit with your organization
- Draft a tailored letter of inquiry
- Find open RFPs from this funder
- Monitor for new funding opportunities