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Download October's Advocacy Developmental Milestone Calendar
Take Action During Step Up For Kids Week!
October 5th - 9th is Step Up for Kids Week, which is a great opportunity for you to raise your voice for the infants and toddlers in your state and community. States across the country are holding Step Up for Kids events in which you can participate, including state house rallies, community meetings, and press events. Infants and toddlers are often left out of policy conversations, so you can utilize this publicity-generating event to ensure that the needs of babies are discussed!
Download October's Advocacy Developmental Milestone Calendar now!
Federal Policy Update
Early Learning Challenge Fund: On September 17, the House passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (H.R. 3221), which contains language authorizing the Early Learning Challenge Fund, a new federal funding stream to promote state early care and education systems for children birth to five. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee is expected to consider authorizing language for the ECLF in the next few weeks. For more information on the ELCF, click here. To read Representative George Miller's statement on the ELCF, click here. Thank you to everyone who called and emailed their Representative about this critical legislation!
2008 Census Data: The U.S. Census Bureau just released its annual report on income, poverty, and health insurance coverage which will likely factor into discussions on health care reform and the upcoming reauthorization of Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). Of children under 18, the youngest fare the worst. About 22% of all children birth to three (2,854,000) lived in poverty in 2008. Meanwhile, the total number of uninsured children dropped from 11 to 9.9% -- a promising sign that many young children benefited from public insurance programs such as CHIP and Medicaid. This 2008 Census data was collected at the beginning of the current economic recession. These bleak numbers garner expectations for even poorer outcomes in future years when the worst of the recession is reflected.
Committee Leadership: With the passing of children's champion, Senator Edward Kennedy, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) assumes the role of Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee which has jurisdiction over early care and education, health care, higher education, child welfare, and family support programs. As a result of Senator Harkin's move to HELP, Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) has assumed the role of Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry which has jurisdiction over child nutrition programs.
Reminder: The ZERO TO THREE Policy Network on Facebook Has Moved!
While many Policy Network members have participated in our active group on Facebook since last year, we are transitioning to a new "Fan" page. The new page on Facebook will allow us to share content with you more easily, and increase opportunities for you to contribute to discussions, post your own materials, and comment on content. Switching to the new page is easy and only takes a minute. Click here to become a fan!
We will update content on both pages through the month of September and will discontinue use of the old Facebook group as of October 1st. If you have questions about how to switch to the new page or about joining us on Facebook, click here to read our Frequently Asked Questions or email us at policycenter@zerotothree.org.
State Policy Updates
Ohio Improves Infrastructure, But Passes Significant Cuts for Young Children
Earlier this year, we reported on Ohio Governor Ted Strickland's budget proposal for State Fiscal Year 2010-2011 that aimed to align state policy and coordinate resources to facilitate the improvement of the state's system for early childhood development. Click here to read about the final state budget, including both significant advances and setbacks for the state's infants and toddlers.
Illinois Passes Law to Increase Set-Aside for Infants and Toddlers
The Illinois Early Childhood Block Grant, created in 1997, provides early, continuous, intensive and comprehensive evidence-based child development and family support services and preschool to help families prepare their young children under age five for later school success. The block grant has a mandatory funding set-aside for services for infants and toddlers. On August 13th, Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill into law that will increase the set-aside from 11% to 20% by FY 2015.
Publications & Resources
Web Conference on Evidence-Based Systems of Home Visitation
On September 29, Chapin Hall and the National Governors Association will host a web conference, Evidence-Based Systems of Home Visitation: Opportunities for Replication and State Innovation, on how home visitation policy can link research and practice to strengthen programming and improve outcomes for children. In addition to the upcoming web conference, Chapin Hall has released a new issue brief, Embedding Home Visitation Services within a System of Early Childhood Services, which highlights the need for a system of early intervention services, including home visitation as an essential component.
State Examples from Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care
The Center for Law and Social Policy has recently added state examples to the Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care project, organized under relevant policy recommendations from the project's Policy Framework Summary. Each state example includes information about related legislation and regulations, how the state has developed and implemented the policy, as well as available cost data and evaluations or other data.
SRCD Fellowships in Public Policy
The Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) is now accepting applications for 2009-2010 Policy Fellowships. The SRCD Policy Fellows will work as "resident scholars" at the interface of science and policy in either Congressional or Executive Branch placements. Both early and mid-career doctoral-level professionals of all scientific disciplines related to child development are encouraged to apply. The deadline for applications is December 15, 2009. For more information and application instructions, please click here.
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