State and Local Advocacy Opportunities   

National 

Photo by Maja T. Castillo, MD

ZERO TO THREE's State Baby Facts

Knowing "the facts speak for themselves," ZERO TO THREE is arming early childhood advocates with State Baby Facts, individual fact sheets for each state and the District of Columbia, to get in the hands of their state's policymakers. Learn more about this initiative, then email your Member of Congress and state legislators with a link to your state's Baby Facts (find your state's baby facts here) or tweet your state's Baby Facts to your Members of Congress (click the links to find the Twitter handles for your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives). Here are a few sample tweets to get you started.

     

Nebraska

Governor Election Action Alert

With the gubernatorial election less than seven months away, the Nebraska Early Childhood Grandparent Network wants to make sure the next governor champions policies that invest in the state's youngest citizens. "If we don't get the first five years right," according to the Action Alert, "everything that comes after in K-12 and post-secondary will be more expensive and more difficult." There are three ways you can help the Grandparent Network educate candidates on the value of quality early experiences for all young Nebraskans: sign your name, write letters (download our sample letter) or ask a question. 

Colorado 

State's Children Not Seeing the Benefits of Economic Recovery

There are more Colorado children living in poverty in 2012 - a time of economic recovery - than during the worst of the Great recession, according to the 2014 edition of KIDS COUNT in Colorado! The report -unveiled last month at a press conference at the Capitol with lawmakers, state leaders and partners - shows that 224,000 Colorado kids (18 percent) lived in poverty in 2012. Learn more about the report. 

Kentucky

Kentucky's Early Childhood Advocates Celebrate Victories on Multiple Fronts

The U.S. Senate and Kentucky's legislature helped pave the way to improve the lives of the state's children and families. First, the U.S. Congress extended funding for the Maternal Infant Early Childhood Home visiting program, a move which will extend support for the Kentucky HANDS home visiting program. In Frankfort, the budget bill included a series of funding boosts and restorations such as child care subsidies, foster care rates, and preschool. Additionally, the Kentucky legislature passed a bill that allows relatives without guardianship or legal custody of the children in their care to access health care and/or education on behalf of the children. Congratulations to Captains from Kentucky Seniors4Kids and other children's advocates who played an important role in these victories. Learn more about how the new bills in Frankfort and Washington, then read how the kinship consent bill connects children in kinship families to vital services. 

Early Childhood Professionals Get Creative with Spreading the Message

At a conference in Philadelphia, more than 1,000 directors, teachers, administrators, therapist, doctors and consultants took "selfies" (image 1 and image 2) during the plenary session and shared them on social media using the hashtag #IamPreK. This simple act helped Pre-K for PA spread their message across the commonwealth that Pennsylvania can and should do more for these young learners. See the infographic, then, if you haven't already, join the Pre-K for PA campaign.