March 23, 2020 No Small Matter – Virtual Screening Join co-hosts Trying Together and Start Strong PA on Friday, April 17, 2020 for a virtual screening and discussion of No Small Matter, a documentary film that highlights the importance of high-quality early education and its impact on all Americans. This event will be hosted on Zoom. Digital access links will be emailed to all attendees during the week of the event. Registration is required. Itinerary 11:00 – 11:45 | Documentary Screening 11:45 – 12:15 | Discussion* 12:15 – 12:30 | Action Item and Wrap Up *Additional time may be included for further discussion. Registration To save your spot, complete this registration form! Questions For questions, contact: Cristina Codario | Trying Together | cristina@tryingtogether.org Lindsey Ramsey | Trying Together | lindsey@tryingtogether.org About No Small Matter No Small Matter is the first feature documentary to explore the most overlooked, underestimated, and powerful force for good in America today: early childhood education. Through poignant stories and surprising humor, the film lays out the overwhelming evidence for the importance of the first five years, and reveals how our failure to act on that evidence has resulted in an everyday crisis for American families, and a slow-motion catastrophe for the country.
March 6, 2020 Washington County Focus Week Urges Increased Investments In March 2020, Trying Together, Pre-K for PA, and Start Strong PA are co-hosting the Washington County Focus Week to highlight the need for increased child care and pre-kindergarten investments in future Pennsylvania budgets. About Taking place from March 9 through March 13, 2020, the Washington County Focus Week seeks to: highlight quality infant and toddler child care in Washington and Allegheny County; thank state policymakers for investments in high-quality early learning programs; document continued unmet need for high-quality child care and pre-k in Washington and Allegheny County; and urge state policymakers to make high-quality child care and pre-k top priorities in future state budgets to increase access to and the affordability of these critical programs. The Washington County Focus Week is one of many to come. Pre-K For PA, Start Strong PA, and campaign partner organizations like Trying Together will host additional Focus Weeks in districts across the Commonwealth throughout the year. These weeks were developed, in part, due to the need for increased child care funding in the Pennsylvania state budget, as 73 percent of eligible children under the age of five are not receiving high-quality child care services. Why It Matters According to the Committee for Economic Development’s 2019 Child Care in State Economies Fact Sheet, the average annual cost of child care for an infant in Pennsylvania is $11,560 in a child care center. That is roughly 21 percent of the state’s median income and 80 percent of the cost of tuition and fees at a four-year state college in Pennsylvania. These costs remain a major barrier for many parents and caregivers, especially those who are seeking to enter, re-enter, or remain in the workforce. Issues of access are not limited to child care, however, as 56 percent of eligible three- and four-year-olds in Pennsylvania do not have access to high-quality, publicly funded pre-k according to recent data from KIDS COUNT: Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children. Locally, 55 percent of eligible children in Washington County do not have access to high-quality, publicly funded pre-k. Both Pre-K For PA and Start Strong PA commented on the most recent 2020-2021 Pennsylvania State Budget proposal, stating, “Although the Governor’s budget proposal utilizes $15.3 million in federal funding toward child care subsidy base rates, this proposal will have no impact in addressing the list of children waiting to gain access to subsidized care or improve the quality of that care.” No Small Matter Screening On March 12 from 6 – 8 p.m. at the Collier Community Center (which lies on the border of Washington and Allegheny Counties in Oakdale, Pennsylvania) Washington County constituents are invited to attend a free screening and panel discussion of the early childhood documentary, No Small Matter. Through poignant stories and surprising humor, No Small Matter lays out the overwhelming evidence for the importance of the first five years of life and reveals how our failure to act on that evidence has resulted in an everyday crisis for American families, and a slow-motion catastrophe for the entire country. These crises are playing out in Pennsylvania, as families and caregivers across the Commonwealth are struggling to access high-quality pre-kindergarten and child care programs. Panelists will include: Senator Camera Bartolotta Representative Jason Ortitay Representative Timothy J. O’Neal Donna Shriver, SmartKids Child Care & Learning Center Audra Redick, The University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Child Development Visit our event webpage to register and learn more! More Information For more information about the Washington County Focus Week and the additional early learning advocacy efforts of Trying Together, contact Cristina Codario, Public Policy Regional Coordinator at 412.567.3673 or cristina@tryingtogether.org. For more information about Pre-K For PA or Start Strong PA, visit www.prekforpa.org and www.startstrongpa.org online respectively.
March 27, 2019 No Small Matter Screening Join co-hosts Trying Together and PUMP for a screening of “No Small Matter,” a documentary film that highlights the importance of high-quality early education and its impact on all Americans. Itinerary 6:00 – 6:30 p.m. | Dinner* 6:30 – 7:15 p.m. | Screening 7:15 – 7:45 p.m. | Panel Discussion 7:45 – 8:00 p.m. | Action Item/Wrap-Up *A light dinner will be provided. Share this flyer with your network. Registeration Free child care will be available for children ages two to eight. Pre-registration is required for child care and space is limited. To register for child care, visit Sweet Dreams Child Care’s registration link. Questions Lissa Geiger Shulman | Trying Together | lissa@tryingtogether.org Katie Phillips | PUMP | katie@pump.org About No Small Matter No Small Matter is the first feature documentary to explore the most overlooked, underestimated, and powerful force for good in America today: early childhood education. Through poignant stories and surprising humor, the film lays out the overwhelming evidence for the importance of the first five years, and reveals how our failure to act on that evidence has resulted in an everyday crisis for American families, and a slow-motion catastrophe for the country.
December 5, 2018 What’s Next for the Allegheny County Children’s Fund? Although the outcome of “Our Kids. Our Commitment.” initiative was not what proponents wanted, key stakeholders are looking toward the future and finding some victory in the vote. Voting Results During the recent election, over 513,000 Allegheny County residents cast their vote on a proposed amendment to establish the Allegheny County Children’s Fund through an increase in property taxes (0.25 millage rate, an estimated $30 increase per year for the average household). The fund would have supported early learning opportunities for children, after-school programs and nutritious meals. The amendment was defeated, with 48.31 percent of voters in support and 51.69 percent against. “What I heard from my constituents was that they liked the idea of increased and specific funding for early learning, after-school programming, and nutrition programs,” says Councilwoman Deb Gross. “But they had concerns about the governance of the fund.” What Does This Mean? The defeat means that Allegheny County still does not dedicate any funding to early learning programs and nutritious meals but does allocate approximately $8 million to after-school programs. Advocates of the Children’s Fund say, despite the vote’s outcome, the need for these programs is still there, and that the vote showed that there is great public interest in finding a solution to funding these programs for our children. “What this tells us is that just over a half-million people in Allegheny County care about this issue,” says Patrick Dowd, executive director of Allies for Children. “There is wide consensus that these types of programs are something we should be supporting, and clearly a number of people care about this issue. That part to us is helpful and inspiring.” James Doyle, executive director of Higher Achievement, Pittsburgh, appreciates the number of people who did vote yes. “The people are saying they care about these three critical things enough to support a small increase in their taxes,” he says. “That sends a strong message for us to continue our work.” Advocates agree that the vote shows people care about this issue and people want to see some sort of funding be provided for this type of early childhood support. What’s Next? The 10 organizations that came together to form the Allegheny County Children’s Fund Initiative will continue to advocate for these programs in the day-to-day work of their organizations. The path to move forward, Dowd says, is through continued conversations with supporters, as well as listening very carefully to those who weren’t supportive. The group plans to create a space for people to re-engage as they sift through many ideas and other feedback they received. A future source of funding will need to have a transparent means of reporting back to the public, they say, but the source of that funding remains to be seen. Allegheny Children’s Fund supporters will continue to advocate for these initiatives in the day-to-day work of their organizations, as well as through their continued collaboration to create a source of funding that will support these programs in the long-term. “Our organization’s mission has been and will continue to be one that focuses on advocating on behalf of the needs and rights of children,” says Cara Ciminillo, executive director of Trying Together. “The needs remain and the needs are great.” “I am hopeful that the state will continue the pattern of the past few years with incremental increases to funding for these programs, but this has not been enough to fill the gap,” she says. “We will be continuing the effort to look for local revenue to help support some of that gap.” *Information provided by Kidsburgh*