-
Advocacy and Policy News
Your Voice in the Master PlanThis month, Head Start California is working through its regional clusters to coordinate a comprehensive response to The Master Plan for Early Learning and Care. The Master Plan has major implications for Head Start’s role in the future of California’s mixed delivery system for early childhood care and learning. Our goal is to solicit broad input from Head Start programs across California to ensure that we can provide the administration with a cohesive and clear set of recommendations.
-
Advocacy and Policy News
The Master Plan for Early Learning and Care: Making California For All Kids: A High-Level OverviewThe Master Plan:
- Outlines a roadmap for building comprehensive and equitable early learning system over the next decade.
- Builds on more than $500 million in federal funds allocated by the Governor and Legislature to increase access to childcare vouchers, waive family fees and support the child care workforce with PPE.
Recommendations include expanding access to paid family leave, providing universal preschool for all 4-year-olds and income eligible 3-year-olds and prohibiting suspensions and expulsions in subsidized early learning programs.
-
Advocacy and Policy News
Our Policy Priorities for 2021: Improving Early Childhood Education with a COVID lensWe’ve turned the calendar corner, and 2021 will be busy. HSC’s vision remains the same – providing more pregnant mothers, children aged 0-5 and their families access to Head Start and Early Head Start high-quality school readiness and comprehensive services, and to improving the early childhood education and care system for the most vulnerable children. Making that vision a reality now requires a COVID-19 lens.
Our advocacy work is driven by stories and priorities. You have some impressive stories to tell. -
Advocacy and Policy News
Measuring impactHow do members of congress know what we want? The answer is surprisingly simple. We have to tell them. There are a few options: in-person meeting, phone call, letter, Tweet. Their legislative staff monitor these communications. Staff could report to their Member of Congress in under 15 seconds.
Staff: “Hey, we got some letters about including Head Start in the next COVID relief package.”
Member: “How many?”
Staff: “Almost 400.”
Member: “Ok.”
But what if the answer to ‘how many?’ had been: “Over 20,000.” That could lead to a very different congressional response: “Wow! -
Advocacy and Policy News
2020-21 State Budget SignedNearly 500 letters sent to Gov. Newsom to urge adoption of Legislature’s budget
The Governor and Legislature reached a final budget deal this week, protecting child care provider reimbursement rates and including additional protections to keep child care thriving as the essential service it is now and always will be. On June 30, Governor Newsom signed the 2020-21 state budget which protects many existing investments in children, families and care providers.
AB 77 and SB 98 are the budget trailer bills for education financing, -
Advocacy and Policy News
HSC Members Go Virtual for State & Federal Advocacy DaysChild Care & End Child Poverty in CA- Virtual Advocacy Days
On June 4, Head Start California partnered with the California Alternative Payment Program Association, End Child Poverty CA and the CA Food Bank Association to host a virtual advocacy day. We came together as a group of over 250 advocates where we learned, advocated and briefed over 50 legislative offices on our state policy and budget overview that will keep families fed, housed, and cared for. -
Advocacy and Policy News
State Budget Update: Senate democrats oppose $14 billion in budget cutsAlternate funding approach proposed, preserving childcare and education spending
California Senate Democrats are poised to reject $14 billion in budget cuts proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom earlier this month, choosing instead to craft a spending plan that looks for other ways to erase the state’s deficit and assumes additional money for schools and social services will come from the federal government by early September.
The proposal relies on an alternate approach to Newsom’s plea for additional funds from President Trump and Congress, -
Advocacy and Policy News
President Signs Coronavirus Stimulus Package; will provide $750 million for Head StartToday, the President signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (H.R. 748) which includes $750 million for Head Start. Head Start CA will provide a more comprehensive analysis next week when details are ready. Funding will include emergency staffing needs, address added operational costs, and provide summer learning opportunities. It also includes $3.5 billion in funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant program (CCDBG) to support child care programs in maintaining critical operations.
-
Advocacy and Policy News
State Legislation Impacting Head Start on Our RadarThe 2020 legislative session is in full swing, and Feb. 21 was the final day for new bills to be introduced in the California State Legislature. Below are summaries of a few early childhood bills on our radar that impact Head Start:
AB 2594 (Aguiar-Curry) This bill would authorize the Superintendent, to the extent consistent with federal law, to waive staffing ratios established under existing state law for center-based programs that meet federal Head Start program performance standards. -
Advocacy and Policy News
Presidents’ Day and George Washington’s WishAfter NHSA’s Winter Leadership Institute, and before my flight back to California on Jan. 31, I took two hours to walk from the hotel to the Washington Monument and back. I’ve visited a few times before, but this time I was intent upon getting a ticket and taking the elevator to the top. It was well worth it. The story of its construction was fascinating and the view from the top was impressive.
When I awoke 17 days later to Presidents’ Day,
