On Wednesday April 6, hundreds of advocates for child care stormed the Hill to represent the millions of people across this country who need quality, affordable child care. This was a part of Child Care Aware® of America's national 2016 Symposium. Attendees were fired up in the morning by former Texas state Senator Wendy Davis, who gave an impassioned speech and opportunity to walk in her shoes as a young mother in poverty who wouldn’t have risen to where she is today without access to quality child care.

Former Texas state Senator Wendy Davis kicked off the Child Care Aware of America Day on the Hill! (Photo by Steve Barrett.)

We were excited to have more than 350 attendees join us for this year’s biennial Child Care Aware® of America 2016 Symposium on April 4-6 in Washington, D.C. Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agencies and early care professionals from various disciplines and settings joined us from across the nation to celebrate milestones, collaborate for results, and advocate for a high quality, affordable child care system.

Arlington, VA – Child Care Aware^® of America (CCAoA), National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC), National Head Start Association (NHSA), and National Indian Child Care Association (NICCA) would like to congratulate Tarra Stangl and the staff at The Growing Patch in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. They have been named Provider of the Month for March 2016.

“In like a lion, out like a lamb”—isn’t that what they say about March? Despite a few lingering cold spells, the city is finally starting to come alive with the sights and sounds of spring. We also have the opportunity to enjoy the blooming cherry blossoms as we gear up for our biennial Symposium event in Washington, D.C. next week.

Updated April 7, 2016 - Symposium is over, but if you want to watch (or rewatch) the plenary sessions, you can do so by registering online!

Child Care Aware® of America is pleased to offer livestreaming as part of this year’s Symposium 2016. This upcoming event will address the hottest topics in research, policy, and practices of interest to the early child care and education community.

According to the Food Insecurity and Hunger in the U.S. report, released in February 2016 by the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) and Children’s Health Watch, food insecurity among immigrants, refugees, and asylees living in the United States is greater than for U.S. born children. It also describes research to support that the longer these families are in the U.S., though their food security may increase, their health declines with increased risk for obesity and diet-related diseases.