Our Policy Agenda
Our approach to policy and advocacy is outlined in our Policy Agenda. As our vision for policy and systems change nationwide, the Agenda outlines opportunities at the federal, state and community levels that will help create early childhood systems that promote quality and effectively meet the needs of children, families and providers.
As our road map for the next three years (2021-2023), this agenda articulates our commitments, our views on critical early learning and care issues, and the policy levers we aim to pull across three areas: next generation program quality; building connected, comprehensive and equitable systems; and elevating family voice and the role of families.
The Start Early Policy Agenda is our foundation as we work broadly across child and family-serving systems to influence policy and drive investments that help us advocate for change. We do this work with a recognition that – because of the root causes of structural and institutional racism — many of the practitioners, children and families whom we serve experience inequitable access and outcomes in early learning and care. Alongside our partners, we aim to advance policies that center equity and amplify the strengths, innovations, needs and desires of the children, families, and partners who participate and contribute to our unique early childhood systems. We view the process of setting forward an equity-centered policy agenda as a learning journey and aim to interrogate our biases, weak spots and be accountable to addressing and repairing our mistakes along the way. We aim to work with intentionality and accountability to drive system improvements and policy change for children and families historically and currently impacted by racism.
