Tomorrow, more than 300 early childhood educators, advocates, and allies will be visiting their members of Congress to talk about the importance of investing in high-quality child care and early learning and why we should expand affordable access to quality higher education for the early childhood education profession. We will also be joining partners and champions on Capitol Hill to introduce the Child Care for Working Families Act!
And you can join us!
Anytime on Tuesday, pick up the phone to call your elected officials and share the same messages from home that we’re sharing in person. Here’s what you can say:
- As an advocate for child care and early learning, I hope you will continue to sustain and grow the important bipartisan investments Congress has made in child care.
- I ask you to increase funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) by $5 billion over the FY19 level to help states build on their successes and expand access to high-quality child care and early learning.
- I also ask you to co-sponsor the Child Care for Working Families Act, which builds on the success of CCDBG and takes this investment to the next level to address our nation’s child care crisis.
You can also post on social media, following and using the hashtags #ChildCare4All, #ECEwins, and #PPF19. Make sure you tag @NAEYC and @SupportEarlyEd as well, and look for great pictures, and great fun as Early Ed Takes Congress!
Check it Out
Child care is everywhere! Along with the introduction of the Child Care for Working Families Act this week, we are thrilled to see child care and early learning garnering so much attention at the national level, with proposals like this one from Senator Warren helping to shine a light on the critical need for significant and sustained federal investments in high-quality early childhood education. We are looking forward to more bills, more proposals, and many more conversations with elected officials and candidates from both parties, at all levels of government—national, state, and local!
Plus: It’s not only child care! Cleaner Classrooms and Rising Scores: With Tighter Oversight, Head Start Shows Gains (via the New York Times).
Go Beyond (the Beltway)
It’s not just DC: AEYC Affiliates, members, and early childhood educators are making noise all over the country!
- Join Kansas AEYC on February 26 at the State Capital for Early Learning Day at the Capitol
- Delaware AEYC’s Michelle Shaivitz testifies before the Joint Finance Committee considering Delaware’s Education Budget
- Jillian Herink, executive director of Iowa AEYC discusses the child care crisis in Iowa
- NYAEYC joined hundreds of advocates from across the state, met with over 70 lawmakers, and had a rally with lawmakers asking the legislature to #FundChildCare
- Idaho AEYC celebrated their Early Learning Day at the Capitol
Power Up (the Profession)
- Read: The Work Beneath the Work: What We’re Fighting About When We’re Fighting About Our Profession
- Read: New Report Finds Child Care Provides Nearly $100 Billion in Economic Impact (EdWeek)
- Review: Decision Cycle 345 + 6 Draft, additional resources, and survey (plus resources in Spanish and Conversational Chinese!)
