| WHSA Community Relations Work Group | Capitol Visits | Resources & Contact Information | Head Start and Lobbying | Advocacy Do's & Don'ts | Vision 2020 | Our Community Partners | Research Developments |
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WHSA Community Relations Work Group
The purpose of the Community Relations Work Group (CRWG) is to advocate on behalf of all Wisconsin Head Start and Early Head Start programs, especially for desirable state and federal funding or regulations. Because WHSA does not directly receive federal or state funding (unlike Head Start and Early Head Start programs), it is in a position to speak for its membership and carry its messages to state and federal legislators. Additionally, the CRWG directs the Association on opportunities for and involvement in coalitions, at both the state and national levels, that seek to improve early child care and education services for low-income children and families. It is the responsibility of the CRWG to advise the WHSA membership and Board of Directors to act and secure positive outcomes for Head Start and Early Head Start programs in Wisconsin.
CRWG duties include:
Being the origin for policy development and change and, further, recommending when it is appropriate for WHSA to be the agent of change.
Creating political strategies to achieve Association goals.
Developing grassroots strategies and training members to execute these plans.
Analyzing the impact of Association positions in the state of Wisconsin to larger, national and federal trends.
Building Association capacity to act in the best interest of Head Start programs.
Monitoring and maintaining Head Start's participation and influence with the early childhood education and care community.
The CRWG fulfills the above responsibilities by:
Conducting CRWG meetings at each WHSA Quarterly meeting.
Providing updates to the general membership at WHSA Quarterly meetings.
Facilitating the development of WHSA's legislative priorities by the general membership and the Board.
Issuing alerts to local programs about important legislation and regulations.
Providing updates, when appropriate, for local programs on pending legislation or other issues.
Preparing membership for Capitol Visits during the WHSA Spring Quarterly meeting.
Developing position papers, to be approved by the Board, on critical issues.
CRWG Membership:
All WHSA members are considered part of the CRWG. Any member, at any time, is invited to join the CRWG and attend its meetings.
CRWG Leadership:
Federal Lead WHSA Board President
Tim Nolan, Executive Director Cathy Howe-Thwaits, Executive Director
National Centers for Learning Excellence, Inc. Marathon County Child Development Agency, Inc.
Head Start & Early Head Start Program Head Start Program
N4W22000 Bluemound Road 720 Grant Street
Waukesha, WI 53186 Wausau, WI 54403
(p) 262-548-8080 (p) 715-845-2947
(f) 262-548-8084 (f) 715-845-0909
timfuture@aol.com chowe@mccdahs.org
Shelley Cousin, Executive Director
Wisconsin Head Start Association
122 E. Olin Ave., Suite 110
Madison, WI 53713
(p) 608-442-6879
(f) 608-442-7672
At each WHSA Spring Quarterly meeting Head Start & Early Head Start parents, program Directors, and Staff visit the Wisconsin State Capitol to meet with their Legislators. These visits are an opportunity for you to educate your Legislators on the value of programs in your local communities, highlighting successful practices, and sharing lasting mementos like children's artwork.
The WHSA Community Relations Work Group has developed a Wisconsin Federal & State Legislative Roster and a guide of Wisconsin Legislators by Head Start Program to help you get in touch with your Legislators.
Resources & Contact Information
Feature: Who Are My Legislators?
Type in your location (municipality or address) and get links to
your Wisconsin and U.S. Congressional legislators immediately!
Federal & State Legislators
Wisconsin State & Federal Legislative Roster 2009-2010
Wisconsin Legislators By Head Start Program 2009-2010
Wisconsin Federal Legislator Contact Info by Congressional District
Wisconsin Congressional District 1
Wisconsin Congressional District 2
Wisconsin Congressional District 3
Wisconsin Congressional District 4
Wisconsin Congressional District 5
Wisconsin Congressional District 6
Wisconsin Congressional District 7
Wisconsin Congressional District 8
US Senate
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Pensions, and Labor (HELP)
US House of Representatives
House HomepageRepresentative Paul Ryan, Congressional District 1
Representative Tammy Baldwin, Congressional District 2
Representative Ron Kind, Congressional District 3
Representative Gwendolynne S. Moore, Congressional District 4
Representative F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr., Congressional District 5
Representative Thomas E. Petri, Congressional District 6
Representative David R. Obey, Congressional District 7
Representative Steven L. Kagen, Congressional District 8House Committee on Education and Labor
Wisconsin's Federal Delegation
Congressional Committee/Subcommittee Membership
National
White House, President Barack Obama
United States Department of Health and Human Services
Wisconsin
Governor Jim Doyle
608-266-1212
Office of the Governor Home Page
Head Start programs and staff are limited by the Head Start Act and annual Appropriations Acts in how they may legally engage their Congresspeople.
You may not lobby to influence any member of a legislature, staff, or government employee specifically to persuade the individual to propose, support, oppose, change or otherwise influence legislation pending before Congress.
However, you can respond to Congressional requests for Head Start related information, educate federal officials (without asking for their support or opposition), and belong to associations that provide educational or informational services that directly benefit your program.
Consider educating your Congresspeople by:
Sending your Congressperson a copy of reports you send to the Regional Office with a brief cover letter letting him/her know how you are doing.
Sending a letter of thanks for continued support when you complete a grant. Include pictures.
Sending Congressional aides updates on program activities.
Sending copies of your newsletters.
Inviting your Congressperson and his/her spouse to your center. Take photos, have brief parent testimonials, share classroom accomplishment, and provide demographic information about the kids and families you serve.
Providing your Congressperson with children's artwork and information about the artists.
Creating monthly parent success stories, written by the parents in their own hand, which relate the parents' positive experiences in Head Start.
Holding an open house at your center during a legislative recess. If s/he can't attend send photos and updates.
Sending a short note telling him/her how well you are doing and expressing your thanks for his/her support.
Sharing great peer reviews demonstrating your ability to operate a high quality center and spend money wisely.
Updating your Congressperson on the educational pursuits of your staff and their dedication to Head Start.
For an expanded and printable version of the above list, click here.
Thanks to the Wisconsin Council on Children & Families (WCCF) for this great list.
Do's:
-Form relationships now!
-Be open to talking to Legislative staff.
-Be informed. Know the issue, the system, and the key players.
-Give personal examples.
-Be honest. It's okay to admit that you don't know something and that you'll get back to the Legislator with more information later.
-Be concise. Keep all visits, call, testimonials brief and to the point.
-Practice, practice, practice. Explain your opinion & make your case to family, friends, and colleagues before you make your case to policymakers.
-Seek out new partnerships & alliances with others who share your views.
-Be specific. Know what you want your Legislator to do and ask for it!
-Stay active by maintaining communication with policymakers.
-Think of ways to involve other constituents in the issue.
-Be patient, persistent, and positive.
Don'ts:
-Wait until you need something to contact policymakers.
-Ignore or be disrespectful to Legislative staff.
-Send form letters or emails.
-Make threats.
-Expect the impossible or insist on immediate action.
-Try to speak for everyone.
-Bury them with paper.
-Argue. If it is clear a policymaker won't support your position, just give him/her the fact and ask that the Legislator consider your viewpoint.
-Give up!
VISION 2020: Campaign to End Child Poverty
A Perfect Vision for Wisconsin
For many of us, Wisconsin provides a great environment in which to live and build healthy families. Unfortunately, not all of our state's families share in this economic prosperity. Poverty is the leading obstacle to opportunity and in 2005 over 179,000 Wisconsin children lived below the poverty line. That's a group of kids larger than the populations of Green Bay and Appleton combined facing what are often insurmountable barriers to successful futures. Clearly, we have ample room to improve our commitments to children living in poverty and to their unfulfilled futures. The Vision 2020 campaign, a collaborative effort between the Wisconsin Head Start Association (WHSA), the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families (WCCF), and the Wisconsin Community Action Program Association (WISCAP), seeks to eliminate child poverty in Wisconsin by the year 2020.
We believe all families deserve living wages, safe and healthy communities in which to live and grow, and access to affordable and quality healthcare and education. It is necessary to meet these needs if we expect to provide healthy futures for Wisconsin kids, families, and communities. With the Vision 2020 campaign we aim to:
increase awareness of child poverty and its adverse impacts on our communities;
discuss, develop, and implement practical policy solutions that address root causes of child poverty in Wisconsin;
encourage individuals, organizations, communities, and policymakers to take action to eliminate child poverty;
and convince policymakers to make the eradication of child poverty their top legislative priority.
We hope you share our excitement about this visionary yet practical approach to ending child poverty in Wisconsin and that you will join with us as we embark on this new initiative! To learn more about Vision 2020, read the Vision 2020 Report Card: Moving All Wisconsin Families Forward, or to get involved, please visit our website at www.2020wi.org. We urge you to begin your commitment to end child poverty by filling out the Vision 2020 Pledge Card. We are all part of this campaign. Help us create solutions that will ensure that no one in Wisconsin is denied a healthy economic future.
Disability Rights Wisconsin
Protection and Advocacy for People with Disabilities
Milwaukee Child Care Alliance
Leaders for Quality Care and Education
www.milwaukeechildcarealliance.org
Supporting Families Together Association (SFTA)
Making Child Care Work
www.supportingfamiliestogether.org
Wisconsin Alliance for Infant Mental Health (WAIMH)
Early Relationships Matter!
Wisconsin Association of School Boards (WASB)
Leadership in Public School Governance
Wisconsin Early Learning Coalition
Great Start - Early Learning Matters
Wisconsin Early Childhood Collaborating Partners (WECCP)
An Online Community for Parents, Administrators and Staff of Early Education Programs throughout Wisconsin
Wisconsin Child Care Administrators Association (WCCAA)
Champions for Quality Care and Education
Wisconsin Community Action Programs Association (WISCAP)
Community Action . . .Creating Local Opportunities for Economic Self-Sufficiency
Wisconsin Council on Children and Families (WCCF)
Raising Voices to Make Every Kid Count
Wisconsin Council for the Exceptional Children, Division of Early Childhood (WCEC)
The Voice and Vision of Special Education
http://www.geocities.com/soozeej/WCEC.html
Wisconsin Department of Children and Families
Protecting Children. Strengthening Families. Building Communities
Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA)
Building a Foundation for a Lifetime of Learning for Wisconsin's Young Children
Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC)
Wisconsin Family Child Care Association (WFCCA)
Supporting Family Child Care Since 1982
http://www.wisconsinfamilychildcare.org
Please see our "Related Links" page for further research links.
Spotlight on Wisconsin
As part of the Center for Law and Social Policy's (CLASP) "Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care Project," CLASP featured the Wisconsin Infant Toddler Professional Credential as an example of a state training, education, and support initiative which promotes a strong workforce and support for caregivers of infants and toddlers. More initiatives are described in CLASP's Starting Off Right: Promoting Child Development from Birth in State Early Care and Education Initiatives.
On June 1, 2009, the National Head Start Association (NHSA) sent its latest edition of "Research Nuggest Updates" to NHSA membership. The Update included the 11 following Research Nuggets:
1) Chicago School Readiness Project (CSRP) Intervention Model Reduces Children’s Behavior Problems
2) Health Consultations, Screenings, and Services in Head Start and non-Head Start Child Care Centers
3) The Impact of a Part- and Full-Day Prekindergarten Programs on Student Academic Performance
4) Special Issue of the NHSA Dialog: A Research-to-Practice Journal for the Early Intervention Field on Positive Behavior Supports
and Interventions in Early Childhood Education
5) A Brief Examining Relationship between Program Quality and Child Outcomes
6) Report of the National Early Literacy Panel (NELP), a Scientific Synthesis of Early Literacy Development and Implications for
Intervention
7) Mental Health Problems in Early Childhood Can Impair Learning and Behavior for Life
8) Promoting Academic and Social-Emotional School Readiness: The Head Start REDI Program
9) The Cost of Doing Nothing: The Economic Impact of Recession-Induced Child Poverty
10) The Serious Need for Play
11) Child Well-Being Index 2009 and Special Focus Report Released
In the May 2008 research brief "Child-Care Survey Reveals Cost Constrains Quality," Milwaukee's Public Policy Forum published the results of their child care provider survey in which they queried 414 child care providers in southeastern Wisconsin on child care quality markers like accreditation, charges and subsidies, child care staff instructional philosophies, and professional development. They found that "cost as well as low wages and lack of benefits for workers can constrain providers from pursuing improvements to child-care quality." The brief details key findings and their policy implications, like the "need for policy makers to structure financial support for providers in ways that add organizational capacity and create incentives for providers to pursue quality improvements." The Public Policy Forum will continue to grapple with the questions "how can public policy encourage higher quality care?" and "will the benefits outweigh the costs?" in a future research brief enumerating the costs and benefits of investment in early childhood care.
From June 26-27, 2008 the National Governor's Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child held the "National Symposium on Early Childhood Science and Policy" in Cambridge, MA. The Symposium "was designed to build leadership capacity in the states for developing and implementing science-based policies that enhance children’s learning, behavior, and health" and built on the findings of "A Science-Based Framework for Early Childhood Policy." You can view webcast recordings of select presentations using the above link to the Symposium webpage. Available webcasts include:
The Science of Child Development and the Future of Early Childhood Policy;
Lessons Learned from Public-Private Partnerships;
The Impact of Early Adversity on Brain Development;
What Research Tells us About Early Childhood Program Effectiveness;
Improving Quality in Early Childhood Programs;
Delivering High-Value Services to Vulnerable Children;
and Learning from State Experience: Executive and Legislative Perspectives.
"The Benefits and Cost of Head Start," a recent article by Jens Ludwig (U. of Chicago) and Deborah Phillips (Georgetown) published in the Society for Research in Child Development's Social Policy Report (2007 v. XXI, no. 3), examines the effectiveness of Head Start programs using benefit-cost analysis. The article aims to answer whether or not Head Start programs produce both short and long-term benefits in excess of their costs, making the paper especially relevant given pending Head Start Reauthorization. Ludwig and Phillips conclude that, yes, "there is an accumulating body of suggestive evidence that Head Start is capable of generating long-term benefits and passes a benefit-cost test" (p.16). According to the authors, the next step is to continue research seeking to determine where further investment in early childhood education and care should be made. The issue is not if investments should be made, but rather "how, how much, and how soon" (17) to invest.
To read the article in PDF, click on the link: "The Benefits and Costs of Head Start."
The Public Policy Forum, a Milwaukee-based organization seeking to "promote sound and innovative policy solutions," has initiated a project that aims "to establish the costs and benefits of high quality early childhood education in southeast Wisconsin." As part of the initiative, the Forum has created a comprehensive matrix of existing research on early childhood education. The matrix allows for easy comparison of findings on individual and societal benefits arising from early education. Generally, the existing research shows a connection between higher quality early childhood programs and long-term benefits including:
improved school readiness
improved social skills
higher IQ scores
higher standardized test scores
decreased crime and delinquency
and greater earning capacity.
To view the matrix of existing research, click on the link: "Research on Early Childhood Education Outcomes."
