Little Citizens, Big Issues

The State of the Union’s Missing Children

By HyeSook Chung on 01/31/12

I had a wonderful opportunity, as a member of the Voices for America’s Children network, to meet with Vice President Biden and senior administration officials to discuss proposals outlined in last week’s State of the Union address and their place in the forthcoming federal budget.

Our task: to ask about health reform and the expansion of Medicaid, whether the administration planned to bolster juvenile justice and child welfare programs and whether children’s programs would be protected from budget cuts.

As I sat among advocates from all sectors (including unions... Read More

DCPS preschool/pre-k lottery application opens today!

By Tulli Dobler on 01/30/12

Parents of DCPS three and four year-olds: the preschool/pre-k lottery opens today! Parents have until February 27th to complete and submit their applications for up to six school programs, selecting any combination of in-boundary and/or out-of-boundary schools, so today’s a good day to do some shopping around of which school best fits the needs of your child. You can also attend an open house and talk to teachers at your prospective school.

If you are a metro rider, like ... Read More

Children’s issues I wish the presidential candidates were talking about

By Gwen Rubinstein on 01/20/12

How many low-income children does it take to replace one janitor at a school?

This is not the opening line of a joke. Sadly, it is a subject that Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich keeps talking about and, as a result, one we keep hearing about in the debates and news media.

Even sadder is that he and the other candidates in the race have had little else to say about children. An informative report by Voices for America’s Children notes that children’s issues commanded scarcely 2 percent of the attention in the first 10 Republican presidential candidate debates and less of that in total discussion and debate time.

Our... Read More

Leaders investing in our nation’s kids

By Tulli Dobler on 01/13/12

Last month, AppleTree Institute for Education Innovation announced that it is launching a series of workshops to bring together a diverse group of local practitioners, policymakers and stakeholders in the community to participate in DC LINKS (Leaders Investing in our Nation's Kids). These workshops will introduce members of our community to AppleTree’s comprehensive instructional model called Every Child Ready.

In 2010, Every Child Ready was awarded one of only 49 federal Investing in Innovation Fund (i3) awards (See our blog about it here) and was the only D.C. based organization implementing a program in the nation's capital that was... Read More

Some Head Start programs not meeting quality standards

By HyeSook Chung on 01/11/12

As I have blogged about in the past, I’m a huge fan of Head Start!

Many early childhood experts believe that Head Start is one of the most important social and educational investments in children, families and communities that the United States has ever undertaken. Head Start has remained strong in the face of changing political and fiscal climates over the past 46 years because it has continually improved the services it delivers to children and families and to the changing needs of local communities. Some might even argue that this is the only successful anti-poverty program that can actually improve outcomes for the very poor children attending preschool and PreK.

So... Read More

Reflections on the year- 2011

By Tulli Dobler on 12/29/11

Anyone who lives in D.C. will probably agree that we work at an above-average pace. Luckily, everything slows down (at least slightly) at the end of the year – long enough for us to take the time to reflect on what we have accomplished.  This reflection is important, so I've taken the time to compile some of DC Action's accomplishments this year:

In January, DC Action for Children became the new Annie E. Casey KIDS COUNT grantee for the District and began focusing on data to track childhood well-being and using that data to help shape effective policies for the District's children, youth and families. Throughout 2011, DC Action produced numerous important data reports:

•    “... Read More

Not the Naughty or Nice List but the Wait List

By Lauren Deutsch on 12/20/11

In October, Voices for America’s Children sent a petition to Congress demanding that childcare be a priority. Based on a report from the National Women’s Law Center, State Child Care Assistance Policies 2011: Reduced Support for Families in Challenging Times, Voices incorporated one of their distinct infographics to illustrate the growing number of children on waiting lists around the country.

Based on the data, the District of Columbia would not actually have an infographic because the Division of Early Childhood Education does not... Read More

New charter rankings answer some questions, raise others

By Kate Kairys on 12/13/11

Not all public charter schools are equal, something we know already, but new rankings confirm that. On December 6, the D.C. Public Charter School Board released a rating system that shows a portion of outstanding schools and another share below par, with the rest falling somewhere in the middle. The ratings put charters into three tiers, based on a number of common metrics. They evaluate schools on student achievement and academic growth on standardized tests (compared to students in public schools), as well as attendance and enrollment. The... Read More

New leadership for D.C.’s child welfare system

By Kate Kairys on 12/08/11

DC Action welcomes Brenda Donald back to the District, as she takes the reigns of the Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA). Today, Mayor Vincent Gray appointed Ms. Donald as CFSA Director, where she will have responsibility for D.C.’s child welfare system. Acknowledging the need for collaboration to improve outcomes for vulnerable children and families, she said, “CFSA is an agency, but child welfare is a system.” We look forward to continuing our work with CFSA, as we report data about child and youth well-being.

We are pleased to see someone of this caliber take leadership of CFSA. Serving children in this system requires the partnership of several city agencies and the... Read More

Our New Year's Resolution: A Better Future for Our Children

By HyeSook Chung on 12/08/11

Season’s Greetings!

For many of us, the holiday season is about giving and the good feelings we share when we do something for others. We hope you will keep DC Action on your giving list this year.

Across D.C., too many young children and youth are suffering from the effects of the deep recession – and they need our help. Your support over the last year has been essential – and we are so grateful to you for your dedication to this important work. Our work is not only about that incredible feeling that collective activism gives -- it is about making a difference.

I would like to share how your donation has improved the lives of children this past year:

•    DC Action worked with the Office of State... Read More

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