You Can Advocate for Head Start!

Overview

You have a voice, and it matters.

Whether at the local, state, or federal level, you can use your voice to make a difference. Advocacy is not about being an expert on politics – it is about sharing your story so politicians understand your reality and remember you when they are making decisions.

Talking to legislators is a powerful way to advocate for your family and your Head Start program. Legislators often say that hearing from constituents like you is one of the most effective ways to get their attention.

Head Start is a federally-funded program, so for a lot of issues, the correct people to contact are your Congressional Representatives and US Senators. However, there are also issues where we advocate in front of the California State Legislature.

How to Connect with Legislators

Find who your representatives are and their contact information here.

Call or email

If you want to request that a legislator take a specific action on a piece of legislation or a budget item (for example, requesting them to support funding for Head Start), you can email or call the legislator’s office. Contact information for federal and state legislators’ offices is available at the link below (note that most offices request that you email through a portal on their website, rather than through direct email).

Head Start California will send out requests to contact legislators’ offices to advocate for key legislative priorities. To receive updates on advocacy opportunities, sign up here.

Request a Meeting or a Site Visit

Meeting with legislators in-person or via Zoom is a great way to share about Head Start and how you serve their district. If you are able, consider inviting the legislator and their staff to attend a site visit of your program.

The best way to set up a meeting with a legislator is via email to the scheduler. You can call the legislator’s office directly to request the information.

Social Media

Posting on social media is a great way to raise awareness of important issues. Use your own voice and tell your own story, or share or retweet messages in support of the campaign. Below are some tips to help make your social media posts effective.

Tag people. Most importantly @ your lawmakers, but don’t forget to tag your Head Start program and Head Start California too.

Include hashtags. Use #HeadStart and #CAleg. Check to see if the issue you are posting on has a hashtag- many do!
Use visuals. Photos of legislators visiting your program are especially effective. People are 3X more likely to engage with social media posts that include visual content. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter make it more likely that people will see posts with higher engagement.

A note on lobbying:

Generally speaking, any time you request that a legislator take a specific action you are engaging in lobbying. Lobbying cannot be conducted using federal funds. If you are requesting that a legislator vote on a bill, or support a budget request or a specific policy, please be sure to review and understand your programs’ policies first.

However, educating lawmakers does not constitute lobbying. A site visit where a legislator visits and learns about the work that Head Start does would be educational, rather than lobbying.

Preparation materials

Email template to request a meeting with a legislator
9-minute pitch for directors and others to help prepare for meetings
Parents, check out the Story Checklist to help structure your personal Head Start story: English | Spanish
View Reyna’s story, shared during our 2021 Parent Advocate Academy