Action Alert!
Children, parents, and early childhood providers throughout the United States should thank you for your help in convincing Congress, on March 23, to pass an Appropriations Act, that includes a $2.4 Billion increase in appropriations for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) (almost doubling it!) as well as increases of $610 million in Head Start funding, $299 million in Parts B and C of IDEA, $35 million in CCAMPIS, supporting child care for college student parents; and expanded eligibility for public service student loan forgiveness. This long-awaited action makes it possible for all the unfunded mandates of earlier laws to be met, and for quality measures, adequate subsidies, professional education, and child care compensation to be improved.
Now that the Federal Government has acted it is time for each of us to take an active part in our own State to have the new money in the CCDBG spent as the children and child care providers deserve. All State child care agencies are in the process of preparing their next 2-year State Plans for the use of CCDBG money. Please weigh in with your State agency on how that money should be spent. For instance, worthy wages for child care providers (see article below) could be included in your State’s Plan if you and your colleagues come up with some concrete ideas about how this new Federal money might be used. You also can participate actively in the 2018 elections, advocating young child and family-friendly policies with candidates.
Connecting issues: Valuing peace and the practice of care and education
Reflections and call to action from the San Francisco Child Care Provider’s Association (SFCCPA),
by Sara Hicks Kilday
The struggle to address low wages for early care and education teachers is not new. In fact, ECE wages have worsened since the ‘70s when the federal Comprehensive Child Development Act was vetoed by President Nixon. SFCCPA believes that with the up swell of action at local levels we have the chance to turn this around—and the realization of that potential lies in our ability to connect key issues and act together. What better place than to reach out to readers of the P.E.A.C.E. News?
We have much to learn from Chicago teacher’s strike of 2012, the Movement for Black Lives, and now we look to the teachers in West Virginia and Oklahoma, and the social justice and political activists in Jackson, Mississippi. Change will come from strong participation from educators and parents together — along with a deep connection to issues of peace, immigration, racism, gender, equity, and defending our environment.
How is the struggle for increased funding for ECE and provider compensation related to peace? War destabilizes communities, families, and young children. And budgets that support policing and militarism, especially the budget [recently passed, although it helps early childhood programs (see above), makes other] cuts from public resources for human needs, as it builds weaponry destructive to the Earth and all life on it. Those who value young children, the practice of early care and education, and equity must learn and speak to the connection.
We can go into further detail on all these issues and how they interrelate and affect communities, especially underpaying and thereby devaluing the importance of caregiving and relationship work done predominantly by women, especially women of color. Martin Luther King, Jr. says in his Three Evils speech, “For those who are telling me to keep my mouth shut, I can’t do that. I’m against segregation at lunch counters, and I’m not going to segregate my moral concerns.” We cannot afford to segregate issues and especially solutions.
Will you act with us? The San Francisco Child Care Provider’s Association is building a network of early care and education providers to reach out to our community. We hold events, conferences, and actions throughout the year, and integrate monthly meetings with policy updates, networking, speakers and a Creative Action Network (SFCCPA’s ECECAN) taking issues to action through creative messaging, event, and action planning. Live near or visiting San Francisco? Come join us — or drop a line. See “Events” or “Contact us” at www.ECESF.org .
Recognizing the March for Our Lives at the MAAEYC Annual Conference
By Deborah Abelman, MA AEYC President
“Welcome. I’d like to thank you all for choosing to spend your Saturday with us. Last night at our Awards Reception, Kitt Cox, from the MenTeach Interest Forum paid tribute to the beloved pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton who recently passed away. In his tribute he included this quote from Dr. Brazelton:
‘Let’s not allow mental illness to be further stigmatized by events like the Newtown tragedy, nor to distract us from the solutions that are closer at hand. It’s a lot faster, easier, and cheaper to reduce the number of assault weapons in circulation than it is to identify, treat, and contain the very small subgroup of people with mental illness who present a homicide risk. We need to do both, of course, but gun safety will make the difference sooner.’
In Boston, and all around the Commonwealth, as well as across the country and around the world, people are marching to remember the victims of gun violence and to speak up for gun safety laws. The MAAEYC would like to recognize the victims and survivors – but not by taking a moment of silence – as we have been silent for too long. Instead we will raise our voices loud and clear. I’d like to end this recognition with another quote from Dr. Brazelton:
‘Without words, a new baby, once again, gave us all renewed courage and a feeling that the world might go on, in spite of the inhumanity of man to man.’
With inspiration from our conference co-chair, Marley Couchon, I wrote the following song. As early education and care providers you will recognize the tune and I ask that you sing along with me. Thank you.”
Marching for Our Lives
(sung to the tune of The Ants Go Marching)
by Deborah Abelman
The teachers go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching one by one hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching one by one
So all our schools can be free from guns.
And we all go marching down to our leaders in a March for Our Lives.
The teachers go marching two by two, hurrah, hurrah. The teachers go marching two by two hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching two by two
To keep our schools safe for me and you.
And we all go marching down to our leaders in a March for Our Lives.
The teachers go marching three by three, hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching three by three hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching three by three
Although we’d rather be planting a tree.
And we all go marching down to our leaders in a March for Our Lives.
The teachers go marching four by four, hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching four by four hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching four by four
We’re here to say “guns – no more!”
And we all go marching down to our leaders in a March for Our Lives.
The teachers go marching five by five, hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching five by five hurrah, hurrah.
The teachers go marching five by five
We’ll work to protect all our lives.
And we all go marching down to our leaders in a March for Our Lives.
Moving Forward: You’re Important to Us!
As P.E.A.C.E. moves forward, we need your help and your input. Please contact 1peaceeducators@gmail.com if you’d like to become more active and engaged in P.E.A.C.E.’s work, especially if you have submitted a proposal for a peace education-related session at either NAEYC’s Professional Learning Institute (PLI) in June, or its Annual Conference in Washington, DC November 14-17. If you have ideas that you’d like our Worker Bees’ Council to consider during our annual retreat May 31 – June 3, please let us know.
Please remember that you can be kept up to date by joining our Action list serve, actforpeace@googlegroups.com, either directly through Googlegroups, or by an email to 1peaceeducators@gmail.com. Please feel free to post there any peace-education related action requests that engage your enthusiasm. And if any of our suggestions for action motivate you to tell your friends and colleagues about them, please do forward them. Thank you!
Finally, we need to remind you that we don’t charge dues, as we value your participation more than your money. But we do have expenses that are needed to keep us going, so we always welcome your donations through our website.
