The Alliance for Early Success is a 50-state resource for early-childhood advocates as they pursue the big, sustained impact that will ensure every child in every state, birth through age eight, has an equal chance to grow, learn, and succeed.
State allies in the Alliance for Early Success network recently gathered to discuss how they approach “community engagement” in their work. The group considered a range of questions as they shared their community engagement experiences and explored the nuances of authentic partnerships.
In Massachusetts, early childhood advocates across the state are collaborating like never before to build a new, stronger early childhood system. This historic project, called The Early Childhood Agenda, is a first-of-its-kind effort to bring together “hundreds of parents, providers, advocates, and community partners to discuss the state’s pressing early childhood challenges and propose effective, family-centered, sustainable solutions.”
From a new nation-leading child tax credit that will cut child poverty by a third, to $1.3 billion for expansion of mixed-delivery child care, to continuous medicaid coverage for children to age 6, to a long list of other wins for young children and their families, there were almost too many advancements to count in the 2023 legislative session. The secret to all these wins? A long-standing “of coalition of coalitions” in the state the centers communication, equity, cooperation, and authentic power sharing.
The Alliance for Early Success is launching a second cohort of the Centering Parent and Practitioner Power (CPPP) Community of Practice aimed at strengthening the capacity of state grantees seeking to build authentic and impactful partnerships that are rooted in lived experiences and values of racial equity and shared power. The eight-month cohort experience creates the space for courageous conversations necessary to deepen the understanding, appreciation, and skills to equitably center the expertise of community members in policy and advocacy work.
New Futures learned that many coalition partners did not engage in advocacy because many of their funding sources prohibited advocacy or gave unclear guidance on allowed activities. To overcome this barrier, New Futures developed their Advocacy Field Grant program with support from their Alliance for Early Success grant.
New Mexico’s Constitutional Amendment 1 passed with 70% of the vote. Advocates at OLÉ—part of the Alliance’s New Mexico Child Care NEXT coalition—worked with field partners at Vote Yes for Kids who had never worked on early childhood education issues before. But the staff and members understood what a victory would mean for the state’s communities and the country. The Constitutional Amendment authorizes a 1.25% increase in the annual appropriations of the fund, with 60% of the incremental revenue to support programs for children age 0-5.
The Alliance for Early Success is launching a new community of practice for state advocacy organizations to increase their capacity to engage in authentic and impactful partnerships rooted in lived experiences and the values of racial equity and shared power. The Centering Parent and Practitioner Power Community of Practice (CPPP) will be a nine-month experience dedicated to courageous conversations to deepen understanding, appreciation, and skills to equitably value the expertise of community members in policy and advocacy work.
Illinois advocates worked with the state legislature and the Pritzker administration to pass Public Act 102-926. The approved legislation includes proposals developed by the state’s Early Learning Council, with support from Start Early and Illinois Action for Children. The Council’s recommendations were informed by the lived experiences of parents who access early childhood services for their children.
Advocates at NC Child partnered with the NC Early Childhood Foundation to launch the EarlyWell Initiative in 2019 to lead the implementation of recommendations from the Pathways to Grade-Level Reading Action Framework. The EarlyWell initiative is informed by the voices of parents and caregivers to ensure that system best reflects the needs and lived experiences of North Carolina communities.
In April, the Alliance convened a peer learning group led by advocates who have been successful in building and leveraging local champions to shift priorities in states without strong track records in supporting young children and their families.
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The Alliance for Early Success does not endorse or advocate for specific legislation or candidates.
