This  infographic  by Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child shows how COVID-19 relates to child development – and more specifically, the impact of crisis and stress. 
Quotable and Notable
"Children and their families’ destinies are tied together: One cannot thrive while the other struggles. These parents are working jobs that often demand last-minute scheduling and don’t offer paid leave. These
factors exponentially increase the challenges many
families needlessly face, which is especially true for families of color and those with low incomes. Families shouldn’t have to 'figure it out' when most child care locations are closed. It’s a false choice for parents to opt between their children’s health and their ability to put food on the table. Parents need care options that allow them to work and go to school. Such options should be available for all parents, in all neighborhoods, at all times."

-Anne Mosle, executive director of Ascend at the Aspen Institute, in a letter to the editor on cleveland.com
Fact of the Week
The number of licensed child care slots that could be lost in Ohio post-pandemic. That number jumps to 4.5 million nationally, according to estimates by the Center for American Progress, if providers don’t receive adequate federal funding.  
Policy Radar
Columbus City Schools  has  announced  a task force to begin planning for its “post-coronavirus” opening, according to the  Dispatch . Many districts around the state are likely doing the same, and they have their work cut out for them. If you would have asked us to predict a single event that would throw so many education policy discussions into the air at once – class sizes, attendance, virtual/blended learning, the school calendar itself, home WiFi access, the  logistics  of nearly everything – we probably couldn’t have even imagined it. Here are a few good reads about the challenges facing K-12 schools now, and likely in the months (years?) ahead: 
 
In the days ahead, you’re going to hear a lot about learning loss, and achievement gaps, and what this all means for student learning – all of which is important. (Former teacher and parent here –  I get it .) But you’ll also be reminded that for many families, the most pressing need may be food. Reliable WiFi. Healthcare and medication. Mental health treatment. Children deserve support for all of these needs, but if you find yourself winding down a rabbit hole about what it means to lose three months or so of math instruction, it may be worth remembering the big picture as well as what this means for  all  children in your community. 
 
Columbus City Council  passed an ordinance last week to support open summer meal sites for Columbus kids, via the Children’s Hunger Alliance. Said President Pro Tem Elizabeth Brown, “This pandemic has reinforced the importance of providing proper nutrition for kids when they aren’t able to access meals through school... As the schools deal with the closure of buildings through the rest of the school year, I am grateful for the partnership of CHA to ensure children are receiving the meals they need over the summer.” 
 
State policy   
In keeping with the past several weeks, much is shifting rapidly when it comes to Ohio’s COVID-19 response. Major changes since our last edition include: 
  • An extension of school closures through the end of the 2019-20 school year; 
  • An extension for those Ohio youths who are set to age out of the state’s foster care system;  
  • Guidance on upcoming graduation ceremonies for Ohio’s graduating high schoolers; 
  • New guidelines for K-12 health service providers, including FAQs for providers serving students with disabilities; and 
  • Many, many new regulations and discussions related to the “reopening” of Ohio, which you can read about on agency websites, the news, or social media. For the purposes of this newsletter, we’ll draw your attention to #4 in this letter from the Ohio House Democrats, which reminds leaders that “since schools are out for the remainder of the year, day care centers are closed, and many summer camps have cancelled, parents and caregivers will need a plan on how to ensure their children will be cared for when businesses reopen.” 

Federal  
Allocated from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act,  $ 13 billion  will go to the nation’s K-12 schools to support student learning. This includes money toward distance learning, student health and safety, and planning for next year. 
FYI
A video we created with the A. Sophie Rogers School for Early Learning (and with the College of Education and Human Ecology’s technology team) has been published as part of New America's initiative showcasing videos that demonstrate the complexity of early educators’ jobs. New America is a national think tank that focuses on a range of public policy issues including early childhood education. Check out the new webpage, and our video: It's Not Babysitting: See ECE Teachers in Action . 
Events & Happenings
Our partners at the Schoenbaum Family Center and A. Sophie Rogers School for Early Learning have teamed up with the OSU Alumni Association to offer three live webinars for families who are home with their young children during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first is Tuesday, May 5th at 1:30 pm: Everyday Activities for Young Children While at Home, Babies to Age 6. Learn more  here .  
What We're Reading
Many Ohioans will start returning to work as early as next week, but child care centers (with the exception of pandemic child care) remain closed. This is  raising concerns  among working parents in Ohio.  TIME  tackles this issue from a  national perspective . 
 
National Women’s Law Center published a brief on what it will take to  stabilize the child care system  during the coronavirus crisis. 
 
Groundwork Ohio has released a COVID-19  guiding principles document , which synthesizes what they’ve learned from the last eight weeks on the early childhood advocacy front, as well as what they hope policy makers will focus on for “strong kids and a strong economy.” 
 
We’ve discussed equity issues surrounding home internet access for children learning at home. New America tackles this issue from a different perspective: what we don’t know about  teachers’ home internet access .  
 
Schools are closed in Ohio for the rest of the school year, but NPR has some predictions on  how to reopen schools  when the time comes and what that will look like.  
 
The 74 million has three great reads on pre-k: 
Beyond the Buckeye State
Connecticut ’s governor announced a new, short-term program that will provide child care assistance for front-line workers during the pandemic. The program applies to health care workers, grocery store employees, and child care workers, just to name a few. 
 
EdBuild and the  New York Times  are collaborating to  develop a database  that shows COVID-19 incident rate by school district, to identify heavily impacted districts. The database will also include information on state and local funding, socioeconomic data (like median incomes and students qualifying for free and reduced lunch), and racial data. 
This edition written by: Jamie Davies O'Leary, Associate Director of Policy and Caitlin Lennon, Communications & Policy Specialist
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