The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) began its hearings–the first step in determining next year’s proposed budget. These hearings provide us an opportunity to help shape the early childhood proposal in the upcoming budget. Please consider participating *virtually* in requesting a 10% increase to the Early Childhood Block Grant for Fiscal Year 2023.
This pandemic continues to add challenges to what children, families and educators are facing.
Children are young only once. We must act boldly and decisively to invest in their futures.
The essential work performed by professionals throughout the early childhood system requires compensation parity for teachers and staff, particularly those in community-based settings.
Learn More How to Participate in ISBE’s Budget Process:
Submit your funding request: Complete and submit ISBE FY2023 Budget Hearing Form. This step must be completed prior to registering to speak at a hearing. Written requests must be received by ISBE no later than October 21.
Sign up to testify or register to listen: After completing your funding request, you can also sign-up to testify at one of the budget hearings. You must sign up if you wish to speak at a hearing so that you can be included in the official schedule for the meeting. You must also register prior to the hearing if you choose to be a “listener.” Registration links are included below.
Finding a way to talk about hard things can be challenging and stressful for even the most seasoned home visitor and family support professional. This has been especially true over the past year and a half as we’ve experienced the crises and challenges of the pandemic and more.
In talking to home visitors, supervisors and administrators about how they’re handling the current pressures of their environments, they’ve shared that what they really need right now is incremental support. In response to this need, we are pleased to announce the publication of the 4th edition of the NEAR@Home Toolkit. The NEAR@Home Toolkit is a free, self-study guide for how to safely, respectfully and effectively discuss ACES (adverse childhood experiences), trauma, and other hard things with parents by focusing on hope, respect and resilience. This newest edition features stories and quotes from home visitors to help contextualize the work described in the toolkit, and a framework for thinking about childhood trauma and adversity.
The NEAR@Home Toolkit
A resource for home visitors to respectfully and effectively address adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) with families.
We spoke about how the four elements that serve as the foundation of the NEAR@Home Toolkit — Neuroscience, Epigenetics, ACEs, and Resilience — come to life in our recent webinar at the Region 9 Early Head Start Conference, “Messing Up in Home Visits: an Opportunity for Repair and Deepening the Relationship.”
As a former home visitor, I can attest that we all mess up. Ruptures in home visitors’ relationships with families are inevitable. By openly talking about our mistakes, we have an opportunity to learn and grow. In the webinar, we share strategies to repair the interactions between home visitors and families, leading to a more authentic and trusting home visitor-parent relationship. View the webinar recording directly below.
For home visitors who want to go deeper, the NEAR@Home Facilitated Learning process offers home visiting programs additional support for the toolkit, including experiential and reflective learning resources and modules, as well as support to implement the toolkit. The facilitated learning process occurs over 6-12 months in a safe, supported small group led by a specially trained NEAR Facilitator with expertise in home visiting and infant mental health. Reach out to us at ProfessionalDevelopment@StartEarly.org to discuss how to bring NEAR@Home to your program.
At first glance, the price tag for the transformative investments in early childhood care and education included in the American Families Plan looks steep: $450 billion. And with the significant federal spending, policy scope and potential for tax increases included in President Biden’s $3.5 trillion economic package, we should be having conversations about whether this is where we want to invest our tax dollars.
This June, economists Jorge Luis García, Frederik H. Bennhoff, Duncan Ermini Leaf and Nobel laureate James Heckman released a National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) working paper that demonstrates these investments in early learning and care could produce incredible returns.
The paper returns to the Perry Preschool Project, an intervention in the 1960s where a randomized group of students who received two years of preschool sessions on weekdays and weekly teacher home visits, beginning at age 3. Because the study has followed participants into their 50s, economists can now examine the impacts the program had on the siblings and the children of the original participants, who are now well into their adulthoods.
Ask Congress to Make a Lasting Investment in America’s Next Generation
Join Start Early in asking Congress to pass the American Families Plan. Write a letter to your legislator expressing what the promise of the American Families Plan means to you.
Their conclusion: the Perry Preschool Project produced dynastic benefits within the first generation (intragenerational) and across multiple generations (intergenerational). The life-cycle benefits of the program include increases in labor income, reductions in crime and in the cost of the criminal justice system. The program also led to improved health and health behaviors. In addition, because the siblings and children of the original participants had higher incomes, they also were able to focus on health and actually logged higher medical expenditures.
As a result of these dynastic benefits, these economists revised the return on investment of the Perry Preschool Project, now estimating that for every $1 invested in the Perry Preschool Project generates $9 in returns to society.
The research makes the proposed federal investments in quality early childhood and care an even smarter investment. Starting early benefits all of us, as it sets children, families and communities up for success for generations to come.
According to an August 23rd tweet from the Washington State Archives (@WAStateArchives), the following proposed mottos for the state seal were all rejected at the 1889 Constitutional Convention:
Our Varied Industries Invite You
Westward the Star of the Empire Takes its Way
Welcome
Put None but Americans on Guard
We, the People, Rule
First in peace, first in war, and first in the hearts of real estate agents
In the end, what motto accompanied the final state seal?
As a result of the Fair Start for Kids Act and accompanying budget investments, new policies are slated to go into effect on October 1, 2021, including:
A shift from using Federal Poverty Level to State Median Income to determine eligibility for Working Connections Child Care (a description of why this is important is included in the Fair Start for Kids Act summary link above); and
Income eligibility for Working Connections Child Care increasing to 60% of the State Median Income ($51,804 for a family of three).
Child Care Collaborative Task Force Report Released
Earlier this month, the Washington State Child Care Collaborative Task Force convened by the Department of Commerce and the Department of Children, Youth, and Families released its latest report, focused on outlining a strategy, timeline and an implementation plan to increase child care access. This report builds on previous efforts, including a child care industry assessment.
The Child Care Collaborative Task Force strategy document was completed after the passage of the Fair Start for Kids Act this spring and the task force’s recommendations complement the provisions of the new law while also laying out a vision for further action to address pressing child care workforce challenges. The report underscores the 43% turnover rate in our state’s child care workforce and emphasizes the negative impact of this turnover on ensuring that families have access to high quality child care.
The task force was recently extended and its final charge is to submit a cost of quality child care study to the Governor and Legislature in 2022. The intent is to use the information from the cost of quality work to develop a financing model to support higher wages.
State Economic Forecast
Last week, the Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council met to receive an updated Economic Review from the state’s economist, Dr. Steve Lerch.
On the positive side:
Revenue continues to outpace previous projections, with collections at $90 million above what was projected in June.
Our state’s employment rate is similar to what it was in June.
Our state’s personal income growth through 2025 is expected to be higher than what was projected in June.
On the risk side:
Not surprisingly, COVID continues to be the greatest risk to our economy. Rising COVID cases and higher inflation have led to lower consumer confidence in the past two months.
The number of households saying eviction or foreclosure is “very likely” in the next two months has increased.
The next revenue forecast will be released on September 24th.
Agency “Decision Packages” Released
Every mid–September, state agencies submit agency budget requests (commonly referred to as “Decision Packages”) to the Office of Financial Management for consideration to be included in the Governor’s budget released each December.
The state began the 2021–23 biennium on July 1, 2021, so the 2022 budget is a “supplemental” budget. By design, supplemental budgets are intended to make tweaks and adjustments, rather than new, significant investments.
DCYF submitted three Decision Packages related to early learning:
A $16.1 million request for ECEAP to convert slots from part–day to full and extended–day; increase rates to reflect those in King County and program quality support funding that was previously supported by private dollars.
A placeholder request to align funding with the November forecast on caseload.
Increased spending authority to more accurately reflect the level of funds in the Home Visiting Services Account.
What’s next? The Office of Financial Management staff will spend the next two months sifting through these requests, evaluating updated revenue figures and building a budget for the Governor to approve and present in mid–December. From there, the work shifts to the legislative arena.
Upcoming Legislative Work Sessions
Several virtual legislative committee work sessions are scheduled for this fall, including:
A September 22nd work session in the House Children, Youth and Families Committee focused on training for early learning licensors and
An October 19th work session on Children and Youth Behavioral Health.
DCYF is Hiring!
The task of implementing the Fair Start for Kids Act requires additional staff capacity at DCYF. Following are some open positions. Feel free to share with interested parties:
The first of several positions managing the new Fair Start for Kids Act grants/rate enhancements, this position focuses on the equity grant: DCYF Child Care Grants Coordinator
In the end, no motto accompanied the design! If you were to select from one of the options, which would you prefer? I’m going for the simple “Welcome.” It stands the test of time.
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) recently invited input on its Fiscal Year 2022-2026 Learning Agenda, a series of research questions that will guide the agency’s research in the years ahead. Start Early led a group of national, state and local early childhood organizations in submitting a joint comment encouraging ED to fully align early childhood education with K-12 systems and center equity in this guiding document.
The comment offered eight guiding principles that Start Early and its partners encourage ED to use to create a learning agenda that helps establish a continuum of high-quality education services from birth through grade 12. The goal of the recommendations was to not only advance comprehensive, aligned services for young children, but also to honor the expertise, goals and desires of their families and early learning providers to set the stage for success in school and in life.
Start Early and its partners also collectively recognize that advancing equity in educational access, use, participation and outcomes for young children and their families is inextricably tied to working for equity and justice for people of color and communities that have been under-resourced and divested from. We encourage ED to view its learning agenda as a critical tool for driving equity in early learning.
We recommend that ED:
Promote early learning as foundational to K-12.
Prioritize research on early childhood to K-12 transitions, particularly for children with disabilities and developmental delays, dual-language learners and other priority populations.
Integrate the needs of priority and historically under-resourced populations throughout the learning agenda and collect data disaggregated by race/ethnicity, language and income level for child- and family-facing services.
Integrate early childhood providers into studies on workforce needs and development.
Value lived experience and family expertise.
Value community collaborations and systems.
Disseminate data and research findings in ways that promote equity and continuous quality improvement for programs.
Create a joint learning agenda with the Department of Health and Human Services.
The Start Early Policy Agenda emphasizes the need for comprehensive, equitable early childhood systems that provide all children and their families with access to an uninterrupted continuum of high-quality services from before birth through age 5. Aligning those services with K-12 education is fundamental to supporting family success. Assessing how our systems serve communities and populations that have historically been under-served and under-invested in is critical to ensuring that the many exciting federal opportunities on the horizon for the early care and learning field are realized equitably. We are grateful to the ED for the opportunity to comment and look forward to their ongoing partnership with the early childhood community.
We are also grateful to our 44 partners — national organizations and state and local organizations from 16 states and Washington, D.C. — who signed onto this joint comment:
National Organizations: American Federation of Teachers; Attendance Works; Bank Street College of Education, Learning Starts At Birth; Child Care Aware® of America; Committee for Economic Development; The Educare Learning Network; The Education Trust; First Five Years Fund; First Focus on Children; National Association for Family Child Care; National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in State Departments of Education; National Workforce Registry Alliance, Inc.; New America Early & Elementary Education Policy Program; Parents as Teachers; Start Early
State & Local Organizations: Alaska: Alaska Children’s Trust | California: Child360; Early Edge California | Colorado: Clayton Early Learning; Colorado Children’s Campaign | Connecticut: The Connecticut Association for Human Services | Florida: United Way Miami | Georgia: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students | Idaho: Idaho Business for Education; United Way of Southeastern Idaho | Illinois: Children’s Home and Aid; Erikson Institute; Latino Policy Forum; Legal Council for Health Justice; Metropolitan Family Services; Prevent Child Abuse Illinois; Synapse Early Learning Systems; YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago; YWCA Metropolitan Chicago | Louisiana: Louisiana Policy Institute for Children | Maryland: Maryland State Family Child Care Association | Missouri: Kids Win Missouri | Montana: Zero to Five Montana | Ohio: Action for Children | Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children | South Dakota: Coeur Wharf Resources (a partner of United Way of the Black Hills); United Way of the Black Hills | Texas: First3Years | Washington, DC: Educare Washington, DC; House of Ruth
As educators and parents of three young children, Kapria Robinson and her husband know starting early shapes not only a child’s kindergarten experience, but their entire educational journey.
“We wanted to make sure we provided early learning programs for our own children that supported their academic, social and emotional skills. And where they got to experience joy every day at school; a place where they were happy, knew that they were loved, and would thrive,” she recalls.
So when Kapria toured Educare Chicago on the recommendation of their foster care agency five years ago, she knew she has found the right program for her family. She enrolled her two eldest children, Alexander and Catalina, who were just 16-months and 6-months at the time.
Kapria, Alexander & Catalina
“Our case manager said families who had their children at Educare Chicago were thriving and that they were supportive of the blended foster-adoptive family dynamic,” Kapria remembers. “With the foster care process, they were very open to things like working with biological parents. Also, the smaller class sizes and the student-to-teacher ratio is amazing. To have three adults, working with kids when they’re younger just makes all the work of difference.”
I strongly believe that all children should attend preschool prior to going to an elementary school, just so that they get those beginning foundational skills in a classroom setting.
Kapria Robinson
An Approach Making a World of Difference
Parent engagement and coaching is at the core of Educare Chicago’s approach, which begins before the first day of school.
“Early on, Educare staff wanted to learn what our kids were interested in and what life was like outside of school. In fact, we met the teachers and had already spoke with the family support specialist in our own home by the time the kids began school,” Kapria reflects.
From Kapria’s perspective, “Educare’s approach is years ahead of most other programs. They make sure to ask a lot of higher order thinking questions. They engage the kids in a lot of discussions, they encourage them to, you know, have their own voice and to have their own throughs — and they positively affirm them.”
“Their team made sure that the kids got what they needed. When my son had challenges with separation anxiety, teachers like Miss Danielle would reach out with different stories we could read with him to make that transition a little easier. It has been a wonderful experience for us,” she continues.
Catalina & Alexander
Educare Chicago’s family engagement and parent coaching helped Kapria and her husband stay fully informed about their children’s education and able to reinforce behaviors and learnings at home.
“They would make sure that we understood what our kids were learning. During the parent engagement activities, they really make sure to break down different ways to engage your kids around math, literacy, STEM and art activities,” Kapria shares. “They helped us to truly understand how to engage our children, what questions to ask them, what vocabulary to focus on.
In addition to empowering Kapria and her husband in their role as their children’s first and best teachers, the Educare Chicago community offers a space to meet, engage with and learn from other parents.
“It gave us an opportunity to connect with some of the other parents, which is hugely important in building a community for your children, so that you have other families for them to visit for play dates and that share the same ideas about what is important for their children and their education.”
Ready for Kindergarten and a Lifetime of Learning
Quality early learning and care programs like Educare Chicago help children like Kapria’s enter kindergarten ready to learn. Because early childhood is a time of rapid development in multiple areas — physical, emotional, cognitive and social growth — kindergarten readiness is more than observing a child recite shapes, numbers and colors. A child who is ready for kindergarten is curious, can form relationships and has social interactions with nurturing adults and peers.
Kapria believes Educare Chicago’s approach helped spark an ongoing love for learning within her children that has set them up for a lifetime of success.
“Educare’s approach to involving parents in their children’s education journey and constantly getting feedback has been a huge part of why our children are so successful and driven to keep learning,” she says. “They not only taught the preschool curriculum in ways that were engaging, but they also expanded it to include skills or concepts we were interested in our children learning and based on their assessments of what our kids were ready to learn.”
Today, Kapria’s two oldest children have graduated Educare Chicago and are thriving in Chicago Public Schools. Alexander is in first grade and Catalina is in kindergarten, and both recently tested into gifted and classical programs. Her youngest, a 2-year old, is currently enrolled at Educare Chicago.
“Alexander just completed his first year in a gifted kindergarten program and received straight As, awards for citizenship, being a good friend to his classmates and being helpful. He’s accelerated through the remote learning challenges they provided. I know a lot of that had to do with the competence he had in his skills and the motivation Educare Chicago gave him that if he wanted to do something he could absolutely do it,” Kapria proudly shares.
Given her children’s early education success and her own work in education, Kapria advocates that all children should start early.
“I strongly believe that all children should attend preschool prior to going to an elementary school, just so that they get those beginning foundational skills in a classroom setting. Children just excel when they have the opportunity to interact and communicate with and learn from one another.”
Last month, families across the country began receiving the first payments under the Advance Child Tax Credit (ACTA), a part of the American Rescue Plan Act. For many families with young children, like Educare Chicago parent Cheryse Singleton-Nobles, the expanded Child Tax Credit offers integral support that increases their ability to provide a stable environment and experiences for their children to thrive.
“A lot of us are struggling. Even though the pandemic is ending, that doesn’t end the financial impacts it created,” Cheryse shares.
“We need the Child Tax Credit to survive. We need it for our families, to help our businesses grow, for school supplies, to put gas in the car. We need it so our families can keep striving and so we can raise successful young individuals."
Cheryse Singleton-Nobles
Across the nation, even as employment is rising and strains on household budgets have eased in recent months families continue to struggle. One in three adults with children report difficulty covering usual household expenses, and one in eight report their families don’t have enough to eat. This financial strain and chronic stress can undermine young children’s sense of security, safety and joy. If prolonged, it can have a negative, long-term impact on their development.
“If it’s stressful for an adult, imagine how stressful this time has been for young children whose entire routine was disturbed,” Cheryse continues. “The Child Tax Credit puts us in a place of peace so that we can be in a better mental state to focus on doing more for our children and not worrying as much about things getting turned off or bills not being paid.”
The expanded Child Tax Credit will help directly alleviate the strain that so many families are experiencing on multiple fronts. Eligible families will receive up to $3,600 per child under age 6 and $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17, with half made available to families in advance through six monthly payments and the rest claimed when they file their tax returns.
Many organizations, including our own Educare Learning Network, are proactively reaching out to educate families on the tax filing process and helping them take full advantage of the Child Tax Credit. At Educare Chicago, “staff let us know it was coming, who to contact and offered to assist with the tax filing process,” Cheryse shares.
What does the Child Tax Credit Mean for Your Family?
Our partners at the Educare Learning Network are collecting quotes and stories about the importance of the Child Tax Credit. Tell us what the Child Tax Credit means for your family, your finances and your future.
In addition to household essentials, Cheryse underscored the importance of the payments to help parents meet their children’s educational and developmental needs. “For instance, a family with a child with disabilities can use this money to pay for equipment and materials that aren’t covered by insurance,” she says. “With the extra money being sent, it’s like, ‘Whoa, okay, I can breathe.’”
The Child Tax Credit is one of the critical supports for working families that can and should be made permanent by the passage of the American Families Plan. Other transformative investments included in the plan would help defray the costs of child care and offer families more child care options, two issues families continue to grapple with. Two out of three working parents (63%) and nearly all low-income parents (95%) report having a hard time.
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart."
Nelson Mandela
As part of Start Early’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB), we strive to nurture and embrace racial, cultural and linguistically diverse teaching and learning environments. We know these diverse and inclusive environments unify our field and ensure equitable access to high-quality early childhood experiences. We are embarking on a journey to translate our professional development and research into languages other than English, starting with Spanish. Our goal is to be more inclusive of early childhood educators, parents and leaders that represent the populations we serve and who strive in their own role to support those who need us the most, our youngest children.
Over the past many years, my bilingual colleagues and I translated documents and resources into other languages (including Spanish), to meet the linguistic needs of the participants we support and serve. Nevertheless, the translations themselves, the process and the extra workload were not sustainable and needed to improve. Having multiple experiences with schools, centers and organizations throughout the early childhood field, we know these challenges are not limited to Start Early.
We launched a project to increase the accessibility of our training materials to better serve adult learners and support their professional development. The purpose of our project was to develop a process to translate trainings, materials and resources to increase Start Early’s ability and capacity to serve linguistically diverse customers. In addition, we designed a process to ensure the quality of the translations and the sustainability of the process itself. We kicked off the project with Start Early’s Essentials of Home Visiting – accredited online courses and webinars to support home visiting in any model.
Reach out to our team to get started on your professional development journey today!
We are excited to debut Spanish language translations of two of our most popular webinars within the Essentials of Home Visiting course catalog: “Exploremos los Valores y Las Creencias sobre la Crianza de los Niños y las Niñas” (Exploring Values and Beliefs Around Parenting) and “Estar Presentes para las Familias” (Being Present with Families). The live webinars will be available through our online learning platform on January 12 and February 2, respectively.
Moving forward, we will continue to adapt our professional development portfolio for additional languages and cultures to better represent the populations we serve, in the hopes of closing the opportunity gap. Our mission is to ensure every child can achieve their full potential not only in school, but also in life.
It is tough to believe it has been nearly three months since the Legislature adjourned Sine Die. With the start of a new state fiscal year and the work underway to implement both the Fair Start for Kids Act and federal COVID-related supports, we thought it would be helpful to resume “Notes from Olympia” periodically during the legislative interim to share updates. Unlike during the legislative session, we will not have a regular cadence of releasing the updates.
Trivia!
OK, OK. I admit this does not meet the definition of trivia, but I am admittedly out of practice.
Is there a place you frequented – so often you took it for granted – and the pandemic kept you from visiting? Maybe it was your office or a favorite neighborhood restaurant. How did it feel when (if?) you returned?
For me, that place was the State Capitol. I was able to take my “first” work trip in late June and thoroughly enjoyed strolling through the Capitol campus. While the buildings were not yet open when I visited, I took in all the beautiful new landscape and wandered through the campus that we quickly left on March 13, 2020. I thought I would share these pictures because it was so lovely (hats off to the landscaping team there). Hopefully, the place will be safely filled with people again for the 2022 legislative session.
The Capitol Building on a summer dayLovely summer bloom walkway on the Capitol campusBeautiful hanging basket and the North Portico entrance
State Revenue Update
On June 23rd, the State Economic Revenue and Forecast Council met to get an update on the state’s revenue outlook. Revenue continues to exceed projections, with an additional $838 million expected for the 2019-21 biennium that just concluded on June 30th and an additional $1.798 billion expected for the 2021-23 biennium that we just began on July 1st.
Personal income growth continues to exceed projections, and residential building permits hit a 42 year high in quarter one. Unemployed dropped to 5.3% in May. COVID and the variants continue to be the most significant risk to our revenue forecast, along with high inflation and supply chain issues in some sectors.
Program Updates
Our state agency partners are busy working to implement the significant budget and policy advancements achieved during the 2021 legislative session. Following are updates on the status of some key initiatives:
Early Learning Facility Funding Opportunity to Open Fall 2021. As a reminder, the adopted state budget included a total of $55.7 million for early learning facilities. This includes a total of $32.5 million in grants and loans; $10 million for minor renovations and small capital projects; $8.5 million for renovations related to COVID; and $4.7 million for 9 specific school district projects. Of the $32.5 million for grants and loans, the dollars break down as: $23.911 million in competitive grants, $7.5 million for loans and $1.089 million for 4 specific projects.
The Department of Commerce released a status update about these funds on July 8th. The email reminded that funding could be used for construction, renovation, or purchase of a new facility. Funds must be used to expand the number of early learning spaces, and programs must also commit to reserving spots for families participating in ECEAP or Working Connections Child Care. The email reported the Notice of Funding Availability would be available shortly and interested potential applicants are encouraged to visit the Commerce website for additional information. Further, because the Early Learning Facilities program has a match goal of at least 25% of total costs coming from non-state funds, potential applicants are also encouraged to start looking into match opportunities now. Note the website has an option to sign up for email updates on the lower right of the webpage.
Home Visiting Expansion Funding
The 2021-23 operating budget contains $8.1 million ($2.8 million in FY 22 and $5.3 million in FY 23) to expand home visiting services, enhance data collection and increase supports for home visiting programs.
After consultation with the Home Visiting Advisory Committee, the Department of Children, Youth and Families released their FY 22 expansion funding plans. Twenty-five existing contractors that met performance metrics around enrollment and retention were invited to apply to serve up to 150 new families. Applications are due August 10th, and per budget bill language, contracts must be in place by October 1, 2021.
Additional expansion dollars will be available as of July 1, 2022, and guidance for those dollars will be released in early 2022.
Federal Guidance on One-Time Child Care and Development Funds Released. On June 11th, the federal Administration for Children and Families released guidance on the use of Supplemental Child Care and Development (CCDF) Discretionary Funds appropriated through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021.
These supplemental federal dollars are intended to be used over the next three years to help states, territories, and tribes build a stronger child care system and help families afford quality child care. The federal guidance strongly recommends lead agencies prioritize these funds to address provider payment rates and overall workforce compensation. The guidance posits that increasing compensation will increase quality and provide parents more options while also increasing wages and providing supports for child care as businesses.
Lead agencies have until September 30, 2023, to obligate these funds. The Washington State Legislature programmed much of our state’s supplemental CCDF funding in its 2021-23 biennial budget.
DCYF Launches Fair Start Act Webpage. Recently, DCYF launched a section on its website dedicated to Fair Start for Kids Act implementation. The site is a “one-stop-shop” for a summary of the Fair Start Act provisions and updates on DCYF’s implementation efforts. DCYF will regularly update the site.
Welcome, Jess!
Start Early Washington is very excited to welcome Jess Galvez to our team as the Communications and Policy Manager. Jess comes to us from Save the Children Action Network and brings a breadth of experience in early learning, communications, grassroots organizing, and so much more. We are thrilled to have her as a valued member of our team. One of her top priorities is to get Start Early Washington’s social media presence going – so look for us on Twitter soon!
Capital Campus Child Care Center Nearing Completion
On my walking tour, I took in the Capital Campus Child Care Center that is close to opening to serve families of Capitol and state employees. (You can see how close the center is to campus by the proximity of the Capitol dome in the upper left of the picture below).
The campus child care building will have 198 solar panels and each panel will produce 440 watts of energy. This project will make the new child care center a Net-Zero building.
Campus child care center outdoor area
Chicago is a key part of Start Early’s story and identity. Since our founding in 1982, we are proud to have supported each mayoral administration in their efforts to create an exemplary early childhood system here in our hometown.
In the fall of 2020, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot launched Every Child Ready Chicago (ECRC), a multiyear, public-private partnership to align the various prenatal-to-five systems and supports serving Chicago’s children and families under a shared vision of success and build the early childhood systems infrastructure needed for thousands more children to enter kindergarten ready to learn.
Through its work, the initiative seeks to create a strong and equitable early childhood system where all parents and children, particularly those in under-resourced communities, have access to quality services. By partnering with parents and communities, the initiative can build a forward-moving plan capable of withstanding changes in leadership throughout the city that are bound to happen.
Start Early’s Role
Our approach to improving early learning systems centers on developing strong program, advocacy and research partnerships. As a first step, Start Early supported the Mayor’s Office in bringing together a diverse group of agencies, experts, and organizations for the launch of the Early Childhood Working Group.
As the work transitions into the next phase, Start Early will continue to play a project facilitation role, working collaboratively to engage private partners and stakeholders and facilitating family and community engagement to center their voices in the work. We will also continue to contribute our policy, advocacy and systems perspective and share lessons from this important work with other cities and states across the country.
In the fall of 2020, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot launched 