Child Care Aware^® of America is rolling out a new informative series that illuminates exemplary family and community engagement practices. The Family and Community Engagement: Promising Practices Spotlight Series highlights and celebrates innovative, high-quality family and community engagement programs occurring in a range of early childhood settings. We hope this series will not only introduce you to successful initiatives making an impact in communities across the nation, but that it will inspire you as child care resources and referral staff (CCR&Rs), child care providers and other early childhood leaders as you advance your work with families and communities.

Kicking off the Spotlight Series:  The first spotlight in our series shines on, Apoyando Familias, Aprendiendo Juntos (Supporting Families, Learning Together), a radio show that connects weekly with Spanish-speaking families and caregivers. The program is a product of Wisconsin’s statewide network CCR&R, Supporting Families Together Association. This program demonstrates how organizations can leverage media outreach to create meaningful dialogue with and meet the needs of diverse families with young children and their communities.

Child Care Aware® of America is excited to release four new story maps examining gaps in child care supply and demand  for infants and toddlers. Child care slots for children age birth to three can be both difficult to find and unaffordable for many  families. Our Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) partners in Alaska, Arizona, Delaware and Hawaii wanted  to investigate the supply and demand for infant-toddler care in their states, in addition to mapping child care supply and demand for children under six with all parents in the labor force.  Our findings were quite shocking:

Early childhood professionals, researchers and policymakers are talking about childhood trauma. Traumatic events that children experience include abuse or neglect, divorce, or the incarceration of a parent. These experiences, known as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), are common, often occur together and can impact long-term health outcomes such as heart disease, diabetes and even cancer.

Child care resource and referral (CCR&Rs) agencies, you have the opportunity to help shape the future of the early care and education workforce!

Like many, I started providing child care as a means of supplementing family income while being able to stay home with my own children. I had previous experience in my teenage years as a steady date-night sitter and as a substitute at a center. I intended to be a provider for a few years.

With the support of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), Child Care Aware^® of America (CCAoA) is pleased to offer technical assistance (TA) to states on projects that support development or maintenance of quality child care settings that promote child health.