What you can do now
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting shutdown of early care and education (ECE) programs in Massachusetts and beyond, early education advocates and leaders are working to identify how this crisis is affecting the country’s early education ecosystem in order to shape effective ECE-related emergency responses and policy going forward. In the coming days and weeks there will no doubt be advocacy opportunities in which the voices of early educators will be critical in conveying to municipal elected officials and state and federal legislators the challenges that the early education sector will face in the short- and long-term. We’ll be updating this post regularly to keep you abreast of these opportunities and related news.
Please note: If you are in need of emergency services now, or know families who are, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley’s office has compiled a list of vital resources ranging from where to find food pantries to information on avoiding utility shut offs. Our last blog post also has emergency-related information.
In the meantime, here are some actions you can take now:
TOMORROW, March 27 at 11:00 a.m., Zero To Three and Think Babies will host the webcast “Responding to Families’ Needs During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Conversation with US Rep. Rosa DeLauro.” The Connecticut congresswoman will discuss how Congress is responding to families’ needs in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in the areas of child care, Early Head Start, and paid family and medical leave. She will also answer questions from participants.
If you haven’t already, please complete Strategies for Children’s early educator survey. If you direct or administer a private-pay program, there is a second survey for you. The organization is compiling data of MA early educators’ short- and long-term needs. Strategies for Children has shared some of their findings thus far in this blog post, which also links to the survey. As they wrote, “Your feedback is powerful. Hearing about the real life, day- to-day challenges will help inform our advocacy and communication strategies. Please share the link to this online form with your networks.”
Keep abreast of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)’s advocacy to secure emergency funds and other resources to ECE providers during the pandemic. The organization is regularly posting updates about their work and advocacy opportunities for you on their blog. There, you can find their recommendations for states, a brief outlining the pandemic’s effects on the ECE sector, and advocates’ letter to Congress arguing for substantial stimulus funds to assist providers during the crisis. NAEYC has also surveyed providers and will be doing so again soon.
For inspiration, read this Boston Globe op-ed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Reps. Katherine Clark, Joe Kennedy III, Ayanna Pressley, and other stakeholders about the need for a major bailout of the ECE sector to keep providers from economic devastation and ensure that they can reopen stronger than ever before when this pandemic ends.
Last, but certainly not least, contact your state and federal elected officials. Tell them how you, your ECE business, and the families you serve have been affected by the pandemic. Urge them to support any efforts to secure emergency ECE funding. There will likely be specific bills or amendments to advocate for in the near future, but it’s helpful to make your voice heard in a general context as well.
Watch this space for updates, and please, do all you can to stay healthy.
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