Groundwork spent the past year traveling the state and listening to members of the early education workforce share their experience working with young children and their families. The overwhelming response was that early educators want to provide children and families the support they need to succeed, but often experience serious challenges in the field. But don't just take our word for it, watch the video we created for you to hear first-hand from these early educators!
We know early educators are some of the best advocates for children and families. Educators interact with Ohio's young children day in and day out and understand the support their families need. Groundwork recognizes the important role these educators have in their communities and has developed a new program that will help bolster and uplift the voices of early educators around the state. Stay tuned early next week for a special announcement on this exciting new program for early educators!
Wrapping Up Our Equity Roadshow in Cincinnati
This week, the Groundwork team traveled to Cincinnati to attend An Equitable Start for Children: The Power of Our Collective Work hosted by the United Way of Greater Cincinnati. The event brought together a diverse group of community partners from Southwest Ohio, Northern Kentucky, and Southeast Indiana to discuss how the region is working towards ensuring that every child gets a stronger start by providing access to high-quality early learning experiences. At the event, Groundwork Policy Director Lynanne Gutierrez participated on a panel with community leaders where the conversation was primarily focused on how equity should always be at the center of conversations when discussing child care. Thank you to the United Way of Greater Cincinnati for helping to elevate this important work!
Let's make young children a top priority for the presidential candidates...
As you may know, the 5th Democratic primary debate is next week on Wednesday, November 20th from 9 to 11 p.m. in Atlanta. Similar to the 4th debate, the moderators are asking viewers to submit questions they have for the candidates. So far in the primary, moderators have not asked a single question on issues facing young children. This is a chance for you to bring childhood issues to the forefront of the presidential election! Submit Your Question.
Groundwork Releases Addendum to ODM's Request for Information
The Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) has been seeking feedback from stakeholders and individuals about their experience with managed care and ideas for improvement as they conduct managed care procurement. Previously, Groundwork submitted a response to ODM's Request for Information. As a follow-up to Groundwork's initial response to the Request for Information, we submitted an addendum to ODM to provide a framework for how Ohio’s managed care procurement and potential managed care changes could be leveraged to advance a quality agenda for Ohio’s youngest children. Read and share our comments to learn about how we can leverage Medicaid to advance healthy early childhood development. Read the Addendum.
The National Black Child Development Institute (NBCDI) and BCDI-Cleveland want your feedback!
Based on the feedback collected from engagement through stakeholder calls with community leaders in Ohio, NBCDI has developed policy recommendations that have been identified as the most significant for Black children and families. With your input, the State of the Black Child Report Card for Ohio will be used as an advocacy tool with policy recommendations designed to advance racial equity and support data points highlighting disparities in outcomes for Black children.This survey should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. If you have any questions, please email policy@nbcdi.org or visit www.nbcdi.org. Take Survey.