The 2024 National Home Visiting Summit brought together over 1,300 systems leaders, researchers, practitioners, policy advocates, key partners and decision makers in a collaborative pursuit to advance the home visiting field and systems of care to increase service quality and improve child and family outcomes. Attendees joined in-person in Washington, D.C. and virtually from across the globe participated in workshops, communities of practice and plenary sessions that discussed issues facing the home visiting field today.

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The Illinois Policy Team at Start Early is pleased to release our annual Illinois Legislative Agenda, a snapshot of the budget requests and legislative priorities for which Start Early will be advocating during the spring 2024 legislative session in the state.

With the new legislative session underway, our team is focused on moving forward funding requests and legislation that will support families and providers across our early childhood system.

Our goals for the year include:

  • Growing and strengthening the state’s early care and education system through an FY25 budget that includes the funding levels outlined in Year Two of Governor Pritzker’s Smart Start Illinois proposal
  • Supporting legislation to create a new unified early childhood program
  • Expanding Child Care Assistance Program eligibility for child care teachers and staff who live at or below 300% of the Federal Poverty Level
  • Creating a state Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program

In these tumultuous times, the need for greater diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is in the news almost every day. One of the best ways to raise tolerant, accepting and empathetic children ready to thrive in life is to start early, incorporating inclusion and anti-bias into early childhood education curriculum for infants, toddlers and their families.

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Danielle Jordan, a school director of Educare Chicago, recently shared the early childhood school’s DEI best practices, starting with the fundamentals.

Teachers at Educare Chicago incorporate songs, storytelling and books into the curriculum. Some of her favorites include:

DEI books for children

This approach to developing a child’s sense of confidence in their personal and social identities (e.g., gender, ethnic and religious) aligns with the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) anti-bias education. As a result, children feel grounded in who they are without a need to be superior to anyone else. The approach also emphasizes a teacher’s capacity to help a child recognize how they are simultaneously different and similar to others, which helps children foster an ability to comfortably and empathetically engage with people from all backgrounds.

We encourage students to share what is distinct about their families, how they celebrate special occasions and what is important to them.

Danielle Jordan, School Director, Educare Chicago
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Educare Chicago student holding diversity collage In a recent activity, children recently made posters showcasing their cultural heritage, as well as their similarities and differences. “The students were able to share and be proud of what makes them unique… your hair may be in ponytails, while my hair is in locks. The simple rule is we would like to treat people fairly and acknowledge that we are different but we’re also the same and need to show each other respect,” Jordan continues.

This focus on respect and appreciation for inclusion is particularly important during this time of racial unrest. “The way that we address the societal environment is by talking about community, family, culture and heritage,” says Jordan.

To help talk about these topics, staff at Educare Chicago have incorporated Sesame Street’s “We’re Different, We’re the Same” segment into their curriculum, as well as the book “Sometimes People March” by Tessa Allen.

We are doing exactly what our name says… We are starting early and building foundations that I hope will give the students what they need to go on.

Danielle Jordan, School Director, Educare Chicago
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Educare Chicago teachers also help students learn how to process big emotions such as sadness and anger, while emphasizing that people express feelings in a variety of ways to encourage an appreciation for personality differences. The school’s Wellness Specialists also connect with parents to let them know where their children are from a socioemotional perspective and offer guidance for development.

Intensive family engagement is a core tenet of the school’s approach, meaning the school’s inclusive curriculum also extends to children’s first teachers: their parents and caregivers. Staff provide parents with book recommendations, including those outlined above to help encourage at-home discussions about DEI. There are also parent support groups and a Parent Committee to help parents to build strong relationships with staff and one another.

Jordan has already seen the impact of their work. Recently, students celebrated a very shy classmate for stepping outside his comfort zone to give a presentation to the entire school about his pet snake.

Learn more about how to address race and identity with children by reading our National Racial Day of Healing blog post.

Last month, we hosted our 21st Annual Luncheon at the Hilton Chicago, where we welcomed hundreds of supporters to discuss advancing maternal health equity. Through powerful conversations and presentations with experts in the field, we discussed the maternal health crisis and the inequities in the system impacting Black women, alongside the innovative solutions that can save and transform lives.

If you were unable to join us, you can watch the highlights of an incredibly impactful afternoon below.

Quality maternal health can change a child’s future, and when we support the wellbeing of mothers and birthing parents, we set our children up to make an impact for future generations. Ensuring equitable access to quality health care – before, during and after birth – can help prevent maternal and infant mortality and strengthen the developmental systems that enable children to reach their full potential.

As Luncheon Co-Chair Sam Yagan shared, “…we have no choice but to address the issue of inequality at birth. Not just for the sake of the kids and the moms whose lives we improve, but for all of us, and for our own lives to improve.”

I am so thankful for the opportunity to bring parents, educators and early learning professionals together with business and community leaders to discuss the opportunity in front of us to reshape maternal health. And I want to share a special thank you to our Luncheon Co-Chairs, Suk Shah and Sam Yagan, who did an incredible job setting the stage for maternal health experts, mothers, and doulas, who provided the critical perspectives needed to understand the full picture when it comes to maternal health.

We are grateful for the incredible support and generosity of our donors and event sponsors who helped us raise $1.15 million. Every dollar raised helps our young families and sets the stage for them to thrive. You can still show your support by making a donation today. When we come together and invest in early childhood education, we can transform the lives of our future generation.

Luncheon Co-Chair Suk Shah said it best: “Children with quality early learning experiences, who are healthy and prepared, do better when they enter kindergarten. Parents do better, and they’re more prepared to contribute to the strength of their family and their community.”

Thank you for being part of our 2023 Annual Luncheon, and we hope to see you again soon.

2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsors

A special thank you to our generous individual and corporate sponsors who have joined us in a shared mission to close the opportunity gap and ensure every child has a chance to reach their full potential.

PRESENTING

$100,000

Yagan Family Foundation


CHAMPION

$50,000

BMO Harris Bank, 2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsor LaSalle Network, 2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsor

Nancy & Steve Crown | The Crown Family
The Hasten Foundation
Diana & Bruce Rauner
Zell Family Foundation


PREMIER

$25,000

GCM Grosvenor, 2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsor Oberhelman Foundation & Cullinan Properties, , 2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsor BMO Harris Bank, 2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsor Related Midwest, 2023 Annual Luncheon Sponsor

Marilyn & Larry Fields
Cari & Michael J. Sacks
Diana & Michael Sands


PARTNER

$10,000

Allstate
Amsive
Susan & Stephen Baird
Meredith Bluhm-Wolf & Bill Wolf
The Boeing Company
Noelle C. Brock, Brock Family Foundation
Jacolyn & John Bucksbaum
The Buffett Early Childhood Fund
Dave & Jane Casper
CME Group Foundation
The Duchossois Family Foundation
Cabray Haines & David Kiley
Harris Family Foundation
ITW
Ron & Fifi Levin, John & Elizabeth Burke, John & Danielle Didrickson | Goldman Sachs
Make It Better Foundation
The Malkin Family
Charles & Brunetta Matthews
PNC
Robert R. McCormick Foundation
Catherine Siegel
Michael & Linda Simon
Steans Family Foundation
Sterling Bay
StoicLane
Sunshine Charitable Foundation
Wilson Garling Foundation


COMMUNITY

$5,000

Ellen Alberding & Kelly Welsh
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago
Anonymous
Baird
Boston Consulting Group | Vicki Escarra
Jimmy & Eleni Bousis
Sarah Bradley & Paul Metzger
The Brodsky Family Foundation
Mark & Shari Coe | Intrinsic Edge
Erikson Institute
The Joseph & Bessie Feinberg Foundation
Fiducient Advisors | Terri & Bob DiMeo
Keith & Rodney Goldstein
Rachel & Devin Gross
Maxwell Gunnill
JP Morgan Chase
David & Gerri Kahnweiler
The Dolores Kohl Education Foundation
Klaff Family Foundation
Learning Resources
Elizabeth & Eric Lefkovsky
Barbara & Dan O’Keefe
Sharon Oberlander
Cathy and Bill Osborn
Plante Moran
Port Capital LLC
Protiviti
Jeanne Rogers & Perry Sainati
Rothkopf Family Charitable Foundation
The Shah Family
Cheryl & Craig Simon
Ken & Kathy Tallering
Robin Loewenberg Tebbe & Mark Tebbe
Laura Thonn
Anne & John Tuohy
Ulta Beauty
Mike & Robin Zafirovski

The 2023 National Home Visiting Summit brought together over 1,000 systems leaders, researchers, practitioners, policy advocates, key partners and decision makers in a collaborative pursuit to advance the home visiting field and systems of care to increase service quality and improve child and family outcomes. Attendees at this year’s virtual event participated in workshops, communities of practice and plenary sessions that discussed issues facing the home visiting field today.

Voices from the Field: Building Policies and Practices That Strengthen Home Visiting

The last several years have only underscored the critical role that home visitors play in their work with families, programs, communities, and states. And yet, the home visiting workforce has reached a recruitment, retention, and well-being crisis point. Addressing workforce well-being relies on several factors and must include the voices of home visitors when making decisions that affect them. This plenary session will open with hearing stories from home visitors in the field as they discuss the successes and challenges they face in their work. The session will also address key areas of transformation focused on upstream systems and policy issues that impact home visitors, programs, and ultimately families.

Las voces del terreno: Creación de políticas y prácticas que fortalezcan las visitas a domicilio

Los últimos años no han hecho más que subrayar el papel fundamental que desempeñan los visitantes a domicilio en su labor con las familias, los programas, las comunidades y los estados. Sin embargo, la fuerza laboral de las visitas a domicilio ha alcanzado un punto de crisis en cuanto al reclutamiento, la retención y el bienestar. Abordar el bienestar de la fuerza laboral depende de varios factores y debe incluir las voces de los visitantes a domicilio a la hora de tomar decisiones que les afecten. Esta sesión plenaria iniciará escuchando relatos de visitantes a domicilio que trabajan en el campo mientras hablan de los éxitos y los retos a los que se enfrentan en su trabajo. La sesión también abordará las áreas clave de transformación centradas en los sistemas ascendentes y las cuestiones normativas que afectan a los visitantes a domicilio, a los programas y, en última instancia, a las familias.

Disaggregated Data: An Honest Conversation

There are varying opinions on disaggregated data’s function, purpose, and use. Methods for collecting data and mechanisms for protecting family information can create ethical challenges and practical barriers. This plenary provides an opportunity for a panel discussion to weigh the benefits and cautions of collecting disaggregated data, what systems changes would need to occur for it to be collected ethically and safely, and what role communities and families have in determining what data is collected and how it is used.

Datos desagregados: Una conversación franca

Existen diversas opiniones sobre la función, el propósito y el uso de los datos desagregados. Los métodos de recopilación de datos y los mecanismos de protección de la información familiar pueden crear retos éticos y barreras prácticas. Esta sesión plenaria ofrece la oportunidad de realizar una mesa redonda para sopesar las ventajas y las precauciones que supone la recopilación de datos desagregados, qué cambios tendrían que producirse en los sistemas para que pudiera realizarse de forma ética y segura, y qué papel tienen las comunidades y las familias a la hora de determinar qué datos se recopilan y cómo se utilizan.

New Tools for Listening and Supporting Households with Young Children

This plenary focuses on the need for new tools to facilitate early childhood practice, policy and advocacy in a world of rapid change and uncertainty. We will present information about the RAPID survey platform, which since early 2020 has been elevating the voices of parents with young children and the early childhood workforce about their experiences, strengths and needs. And present information about the FIND program, an evidence-based approach that employs video modeling and coaching to support practitioners, early childhood educators and parents. These 2 tools are designed to be complementary to existing programmatic and policy efforts, and to provide a context for continuous improvement of services to young children, parents and other adults in their lives.

Nuevas herramientas para escuchar y apoyar a hogares con niños pequeños (y a otros adultos en sus vidas)

Esta presentación se centra en la necesidad de nuevas herramientas para facilitar la práctica, la política y la defensa de la primera infancia en un mundo de rápidos cambios e incertidumbre. Estas herramientas son especialmente necesarias para configurar las visitas a domicilio y los servicios comunitarios relacionados con la primera infancia. Presentaremos información sobre la plataforma de encuestas RAPID, que desde principios de 2020 ha estado elevando las voces de los padres con niños pequeños y del personal de la primera infancia sobre sus experiencias, puntos fuertes y necesidades. También presentaremos información sobre el programa FIND, un enfoque basado en las pruebas que emplea el modelado en vídeo y el coaching para apoyar a los profesionales, a los educadores de la primera infancia y a los padres. Estas 2 herramientas están diseñadas para ser complementarias a los esfuerzos programáticos y de políticas existentes, y para proporcionar un contexto para la mejora continua de los servicios a los niños pequeños, los padres y otros adultos en sus vidas.

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The Illinois Policy Team at Start Early is pleased to release our annual Illinois Legislative Agenda, a snapshot of the budget requests and legislative priorities for which Start Early will be advocating during the spring 2023 legislative session in the state.

With the new legislative session underway, our team is focused on moving forward funding requests and legislation that will support families and providers across our early childhood system.

Our goals for the year include:

  • Growing and strengthening the state’s early care and education system through an FY24 budget that includes the funding levels outlined in Governor Pritzker’s Smart Start Illinois proposal
  • Creating a state family and medical leave insurance program
  • Extending the sunset re: staffing flexibility in state preschool programs
  • Codifying the state’s existing IDHS home visiting programs in law, among other priorities

Each year the Illinois General Assembly passes legislation that can have an impact on families, or the organizations in our communities providing early childhood or related supportive services to families. Start Early leads on some of these legislative changes, often in coalition with others, and in other cases we contribute our early childhood lens and expertise to support the efforts of another lead organization. The 2022 Legislative Summary provides a listing of those bills that became law in the spring 2022 session that we thought would be relevant to families with young children and the field.  We hope that this is a resource you will download and share with colleagues and families alike. We are happy to provide additional information about any of these initiatives or connect you with other advocates where needed. Initiatives that were led by Start Early are marked *. 

The 2022 National Home Visiting Summit brought together over 1,200 systems leaders, researchers, practitioners, policy advocates, key partners and decision makers in a collaborative pursuit to advance the home visiting field and systems of care to increase service quality and improve child and family outcomes.

Attendees at this year’s virtual event participated in workshops, affinity groups, communities of practice and plenary sessions that discussed issues facing the home visiting field today, including innovations in home visiting practices and systems, addressing systematic and structural racism, and improving maternal and child health outcomes.

While the home visiting field understands that parent leadership strengthens families and promotes optimal child well-being, engaging parent leaders in advocacy spaces is another crucial part of the equation for creating positive systems and policy change. As the home visiting field prepares for major federal advocacy opportunities like the upcoming reauthorization of the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting program (MIECHV), there is a pressing need for home visiting advocates and policy makers to elevate the voices and advocacy of families and parents of young children. But where can parent advocates build their advocacy muscle, and learn about opportunities to engage in support for early learning programs in their communities?

Building on the National Home Visiting Summit Advocacy & Policy Community of Practice’s Advocacy 101 video series, Start Early is proud to share a new set of videos that highlights the skills parents bring to the table as powerful advocates and elevates opportunities to grow as leaders in advocating for home visiting and other early childhood issues impacting families.

We hope you enjoy these videos, and we invite you to share them with your networks. For additional discussion on how home visiting providers and policy advocates can bring parent leaders into meaningful partnership, check out the January webinar from the National Home Visiting Summit Advocacy & Policy Community of Practice. This webinar features a panel discussion with parent leaders about the key relationship building strategies that are foundational to creating space for parent voices.

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Last week, we hosted our 20th Annual Luncheon—our first-ever hybrid event—where we welcomed hundreds of individuals in-person here in Chicago and hundreds of others virtually across the country. Presented by LaSalle Network, the powerful program demonstrated how quality early learning and care programs can promote resilience and hope for families with young children—now more than ever.

If you were unable to join us or want to tune in again, you can watch a recording of the full program below.

Through this powerful program of diverse voices and experiences, we hope you can see the role we each have as parents, family members, friends or colleagues to support our children, families and those who care for them. From spreading the word about early learning’s impact in our communities, to contacting your legislator in support of proposed policies or sharing the gift of financial support, your investment of time or resources will make a difference.

As Luncheon Co-Chair Curt Bailey shared, “adversity brings opportunity, and we have an incredible opportunity to create a new normal that ensures equitable access to quality early learning and programs that promote resilience for every child and family.”

I am overwhelmed with appreciation for the parents, educators and early learning champions, including out Luncheon Co-Chairs Curt Bailey and Mary Hasten, who highlighted the critical need for quality early learning and care programs and services in our communities.

We are grateful for the incredible support and generosity of our donors and event sponsors who helped us exceed our fundraising goal of $1.3 million. Every dollar will help change the course for our youngest learners. You can still show your support by making a gift today. When we come together and invest in early childhood education, we can transform the lives of our future generation.

Luncheon Co-Chair Mary Hasten said it perfectly. “There is certainly more work to be done, but we know that our collective work IS making a difference today, and TOGETHER, we know that we can impact every tomorrow for young children and their families.”

Thank you for being part of our 2022 Annual Luncheon, and we hope to see you again soon.

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