It’s May and there have already been 704 cases of measles across the U.S. this year. That’s more than any single year since 1994. About one-quarter of this year’s cases have affected children under age 5. And nine times out of ten, the person who got sick was either unvaccinated or unsure if they were vaccinated.

Child Care Aware® of America Statement On The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Markup

WASHINGTON, DC — In response to the child care funding increase passed yesterday by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA) Executive Director Dr. Lynette M. Fraga released the following statement:

In 2017, Early Learning Indiana (ELI), with the support of the Lilly Endowment, launched the Family Engagement Prize Competition. Recently completing their second year, this statewide prize competition highlights family engagement innovation and excellence in early care and education (ECE) programs. The Prize Competition celebrates the exemplary actions of ECE professionals to empower families’ in their role as their children’s first teachers! Over the past two years programs have been recognized for practices like, offering parenting classes, job placement, housing, and food and fuel assistance, as well as parent-child engagement materials to use at home.

Most child care providers have an on-site parking lot or driveway. This is a huge benefit for families and staff, making drop-off and pick-up a lot easier. But that benefit comes with some potentially big costs. Parking lots and driveways can present some serious risks to children’s health.  

How can we get people to not only see the value of high-quality early education, but understand we’re all harmed when access is limited and take action so all children can take advantage?

At The Family Conservancy, like countless other organizations we work alongside, we have struggled with this challenge. It’s one thing to gain understanding and agreement on an issue, it’s a whole different matter to implement the radical changes that are needed.

Summer is my favorite time of year and I find that it’s hard to accomplish everything I hope to achieve before the season ends. Recently, I started to brainstorm my summer “to-do” list to help me prioritize and plan my summer adventures. I’m not sure what you usually set your sights on, but typically on my list are activities such as reading a best seller, taking a beach trip, and visiting family. This year, at the top of my list is crossing America’s longest swinging bridge. The Swinging Bridge to Prosperity stretches 335 feet (which is longer than a football field) and 70 feet above the east prong of the Little Pigeon River in Tennessee. Can you imagine?! This will take me outside of my comfort zone and challenge me more than some of the other items on my list, for sure!