early education advocacy

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Early Childhood Education Wins When We Vote!

by Paula Drew, WECA Research and Policy Analyst 

PreschoolI have been voting for 20 years. I don’t have an idyllic memory of the first time I voted. In fact, I don’t remember my first vote at all. I have memories of votes I’ve cast for candidates that meant a lot to me. I also have memories of looking at a ballot and feeling embarrassed because I did not recognize all the names listed on it.

My BEST voting memory is from a time when the line at my polling place was so long that it circled around the entire outside of the building. It was a chilly night and I wasn’t properly dressed to be standing outside for hours. But- the energy was electric, and that enthusiasm warmed me from the inside out. Looking around the crowd, everyone’s eyes glimmered of hope and it seemed we were all a part of something much greater than ourselves.

The truth is, we ARE all a part of something much greater than ourselves each and every time we vote! Every vote we cast is a powerful way of saying “hey, this is how I feel about the future for myself, my loved ones and my community.” When we vote, we equalize the playing field. When we choose not to vote, we choose to put our future in someone else’s hands.
2018 VOTE Campaign (5)Now, you wouldn’t blindly purchase a house, choose your child’s school or accept a new job without knowing the finer details that come with those choices, would you? So- I wouldn’t suggest doing that with your vote either. Trust me, it’s embarrassing! The good news is – – the miracles of technology have made accessing straightforward information about ballots and candidates very easy. So easy, that even a busy, full-time working mom, graduate student like myself can now make better choices. With the 2018 fall general election right around the corner, it’s time to start planning your vote. On November 6th, we want you to join all of us at WECA and in all parts of our beautiful nation to decide collectively where we go next!

Here’s what you need to know.

When: Tuesday, November 6th, 2018 7:00am – 8:00pm. Take a moment right now to decide a time on  this day that you will vote and put it on your calendar.

Where: Find your polling station location. Never been there before? Cruise by a week or so in advance so that you are aware of the parking and accessibility options.

How: Confirm that you are registered to vote at your current home address and don’t forget your ID. Don’t have a driver’s license? No problem. Click here now to get a free voter ID card. Going to be out of town? Click here to learn about absentee voting.

Why: Find out what’s going to be on your individual ballot here and then set aside a little time each week to learn about the candidates and issues. Most importantly, know what’s important to you and don’t be bashful about calling a candidate’s headquarters to ask where they stand on an issue (use these sample questions to guide that discussion).

Take it to the next level:

  • Take someone with you who might otherwise not make the commitment to vote.
  • Organize a group of co-workers or friends to head to the polls as a team.
  • Volunteer at your local polling place or for a candidate you believe in.
  • Consider a future run for office if the candidates out there do not represent your values.

Voting for early care and education issues? Take a selfie with your “I voted” sticker and post it to social media with the tag #ECEWins

 

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“The Raising of America” and a view from Wisconsin.

Among the 29 richest countries in the world, the US ranks 26th in child well-being. How can that be?

The Raising of America, a soon-to-be released PBS documentary, explores the connection between a strong early childhood education system and a child’s overall well-being.  To this point, the film reveals that the U.S. ranks 16th in child care affordability and 22nd in child care quality.

At a pre-screening last fall, viewers asked “What’s being done?” and “What can we do?”

Nesting graphicIn response, WECA and eight other organizations dedicated to children and families will be hosting a Wisconsin World Café in April for a variety of community leaders. Participants will participate in small-table discussions about children, families, and communities and what they need to succeed.

Also attending is, Dr. Renée Boynton-Jarrett, a pediatrician and researcher, who appears in the documentary. Using the metaphor of a nest, Dr. Boynton-Jarrett sheds some light on the interdependent nature of young children, their families, their larger community, and culture.

“So you have a child who is an individual with their biology, their genetics, and their personality characteristics,” Dr. Boynton-Jarrett explains in the documentary The Raising of America. “They are nested in their family, their peers, and their close social relationships. But that is nested in another level that is your school, your community institutions, your neighborhood. That level is nested within our cultural, our laws, our policies, our social structures, our systems. As a society, where do we see the role of our policies? Is it part of that role to help children grow and develop?”

For more, watch this 11 minute preview clip.

Next month, WECA will highlight the event and report on the discussion. Stay tuned.

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Testifying for child care provider professionalism and quality care

In support of child care providers throughout Wisconsin, WECA Board member Dr. Dipesh Navsaria recently submitted testimony to the Wisconsin Legislature. Under review was Assembly Bill 698 – legislation proposing a new protocol in how child care providers manage the sleep needs of infants and toddlers.

Simply put, it is WECA’s position that a child’s individual needs must always be addressed with competence and good judgment. Good communication between parents and providers must be ongoing.  Therefore, we feel it unnecessary to legislate a practice (determining a child’s sleep needs) that is by definition changeable, even on a daily basis.

Read Dr. Navsaria’s full testimony here:

 As a practicing pediatrician and a board member of the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association, I am opposed to AB 698.  While on the face of it the bill may seem reasonable, but the fact remains that with young children, the assessment and experience of a child care provider to determine the rest and sleep needs of a child in their charge is key.

This bill essentially takes away the partnership and trust between a parent and child care provider by allowing for a blanket instruction to override the experience and judgment which needs to be applied in any individual situation.  Young children vary greatly, sometimes even from day to day.  By this bill, a child care provider who feels that a child may need rest due to a minor illness or other condition would potentially be left in a position where their best judgment would be overridden by written instructions.

WECA has always supported child care providers attentively listening to and responding appropriately to parental needs and views.  We hope that any concerns or guidelines around any aspect of child behavior and care (including sleep) would be part of a flexible and trusting relationship, with ongoing communication between the parent and child care provider, not reduced to legislatively-imposed fiats that run the risk of not serving the best interests of the child.

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Today is the Day to Call-in for Kids!

Watch the video above and follow the instructions in our previous blog post to call your legislators! Help us ensure that federal funding for early education does not get cut.