When Marcella Taylor, ParentChild+ Program Manager at Start Early Washington, reflects on the journey with her daughter Taylor-Corrine, the line between professional mission and personal experience beautifully blurs. What began as an early parenting journey supported by the ParentChild+ home visiting program has now evolved into witnessing her daughter confidently step into adulthood—and into her legacy.
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At 22, Taylor-Corrine is preparing to graduate from the University of Southern California, a poised and purposeful young woman with a powerful sense of identity and history. As Marcella recounts a recent trip the two took together to the annual ParentChild+ national conference, she describes a surreal moment of recognition: “It’s my first time seeing her and thinking, oh my gosh, you’re a full-grown woman. I knew it, but to see it, face to face—wow.”
Watching Taylor-Corrine navigate the world as an adult has brought with it a complex and deeply emotional recalibration for Marcella. “It’s been a readjustment. I logically knew this phase was coming, but emotionally? It’s different. It’s new.”
And yet, it’s also something that feels profoundly full circle.
Taylor-Corrine’s very name tells a story—of heritage, strength, and intentionality. “Taylor is my maiden name,” Marcella explains. “Corrine was her paternal grandmother’s name, someone she never got to meet. and then Benton, is her dad, Tony. Her name is family. Her name is legacy. Her name is history.” This legacy is not just in name alone—it’s evident in the way Taylor-Corrine lives, learns, and leads.
On USC’s campus, Taylor-Corrine co-founded Woodlums, a group dedicated to connecting Black students with nature. From organizing camping trips to leading retreats, she’s created space for healing and joy in the outdoors—a deeply intentional act of community care and empowerment. “She leaves her mark,” Marcella beams. “She walks onto campus with this energy that says, ‘This is my space. I belong here.’”
Getting there wasn’t easy. Taylor-Corrine’s journey through predominantly white educational institutions—from Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences to USC—meant navigating challenges and trauma. “It was hard. There were times I wished she had the comfort and cultural embrace of an HBCU,” Marcella says. “But what I can say is, she was prepared.”
That preparation, Marcella reflects, was both personal and intentional. “We always said: school is for academics. But your identity, your history? That starts at home.” Taylor-Corrine entered these institutions grounded in who she was—something both Marcella and Taylor-Corrine’s dad were deeply committed to fostering.
Marcella credits ParentChild+ with helping her understand and name what she and Tony were already doing instinctively. “ParentChild+ validated our parenting,” she explains. “I didn’t realize that when I was doing call-and-response with her or narrating our day, I was building her language and literacy skills. The program put words to what we were already doing, and that meant everything.”
Marcella’s connection to ParentChild+ runs deep. Taylor-Corrine was the reason they enrolled. Tony became involved in early learning advocacy across the state, serving on boards like Thrive Washington. Eventually, Marcella joined the ParentChild+ team herself. “She is the root of it all,” Marcella says. “The reason for every step we took in this work.”
One of the most profound parts of Marcella’s story is how the roles between mother and daughter have begun to shift. “Honestly, if ParentChild+ were still happening in our home today, I’d be the child and she’d be the parent,” Marcella laughs. “Life is the home visitor now.”
Marcella describes being constantly inspired by what she learns from Taylor-Corrine—through her education, activism, and sheer way of being in the world. “She recommends books, she shares insights, she challenges my thinking. She’s teaching me all the time.”
And, she sees her daughter’s academic journey as one that uplifts them both. “Every time I talk to her, I learn something. And that’s one of the greatest joys of motherhood—especially at this stage.”
What made it all possible? Freedom. Creativity. A home environment where ideas and exploration were always welcomed. “She built a drum set out of cardboard boxes as a kid,” Marcella remembers. “Whenever she had an interest, we asked, ‘What do you need to explore that?’” That kind of parenting—intentional, affirming, and curious—was supported by the guidance of home visiting and a deep trust in Taylor-Corrine’s unfolding self.
What’s clear from Taylor Corrine’s story—and from so many like hers—is that the journey of parent engagement through home visiting doesn’t end when the visits do. Instead, it sets the stage for a lifetime of impact. Listening to Taylor Corrine question sources, guide conversations with compassion, and navigate complex interpersonal dynamics with emotional intelligence is more than just heartwarming; it’s evidence of what early investment in families can unlock. Through ParentChild+, both children and caregivers grow—in language, in confidence, and in capacity.
This isn’t just about one young woman’s journey into adulthood—it’s about what’s possible when families are supported, when history is honored, and when love is allowed to evolve. It’s about legacy. It’s about parenting with both intuition and intention.
And it’s about understanding that sometimes, the greatest lessons come from the very children we once taught to walk.
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At Start Early Washington, we know that the early years are the foundation for a child’s lifelong development—and no one captures the importance of this work better than those who’ve worked with new families firsthand. Hannah Vandermay, Parents as Teachers (PAT) Training and Technical Assistance Specialist, brings a deep well of experience, empathy, and wisdom from her years walking alongside families through some of their most vulnerable moments.
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Hannah’s journey into supporting families didn’t begin in an office or a classroom. It began as a teenage intern, teaching life skills to young adults—many of whom were barely older than she was. “I was 17 years old, living at home, teaching independent living classes to 18-21 year olds about managing leases and budgeting,” she recalls. That early experience opened the door to a career rooted in service and compassion. Over the years, she worked with foster families, children in care, and families experiencing homelessness—building a systems-level understanding of the barriers families face and how to support them before crisis hits. But what moved Hannah most was the realization that so many of these systems were stepping in too late.
I was working with kids who had already experienced so much trauma. It felt like we were playing catch-up,” she says. “I wanted to work upstream—to help prevent that trauma from happening in the first place.
That realization led her to home visiting. Through her work with Lydia Place, a nonprofit serving families experiencing homelessness in Bellingham, Washington, Hannah saw firsthand the transformation that comes when families not only find housing but are also met with consistent, caring support through parenting services supports like Parents as Teachers.
“Moving into housing is a huge milestone, but it doesn’t make everything easier right away,” she explains. “Families go from surviving day-to-day to facing all the pressures that come with stability—bills, expectations, isolation. That’s when parenting challenges often hit the hardest. Home visiting helps families navigate that transition, not just logistically, but emotionally.”
In home visiting, Hannah found a way to bridge prevention with empowerment—walking alongside families through both the challenges and the celebrations. It’s really about more than resources, she emphasizes. It’s about being present.
“When families are in survival mode, they often feel like they’re failing, especially when they don’t have a support system,” she shares. “Many of the families I’ve worked with couldn’t name a single person in their life they could rely on. So we became that consistent presence. Someone to notice their wins, to say, ‘You’re doing something different. You’re changing the story for your kids.’ That means everything.”
For Hannah, the most powerful part of this work is helping parents reconnect with their instincts—and learn to trust themselves. “A lot of parents I supported had already lost children or been through traumatic systems. They didn’t trust their own judgment. But we would remind them: You get to write a new story. You are the expert in your child’s life.”
That mindset shift—helping parents separate behavior from emotion, celebrate the small victories, and learn new ways of seeing themselves—is core to what makes home visiting work. It’s not about doing it for families; it’s about doing it with them.
“We often think we need to fix behavior or stop big feelings, but really it’s about helping kids—and parents—learn to navigate those emotions,” Hannah explains. “If a toddler is climbing everything, maybe they need a safe place to climb. It’s not about stopping the behavior; it’s about understanding the need behind it.”
Throughout her career, Hannah has witnessed the shift in the field—from rigid systems that focus on compliance to more flexible, human-centered approaches that ask: What do families really need? Sometimes, it’s as simple—and as powerful—as a washing machine, a supportive conversation, or someone showing up consistently.
Home visiting is about presence. It’s not always about having all the answers or the perfect resource. Sometimes the biggest impact comes from sitting with a parent and helping them see the difference they’re making, even on the hardest days.
As a training and technical assistance specialist, Hannah now supports programs across the state, ensuring they meet model fidelity and their funders’ expectations, while keeping central the importance of the parent/home visitor relationship. And her message is clear: home visiting changes lives—not because it fixes everything, but because it honors the journey, lifts up the parent’s voice, and keeps believing in families, even when systems don’t.
In a world that often tells struggling parents what they’re doing wrong, home visiting offers something else: a mirror, a cheerleader, a partner in the process. And that, says Hannah, is where the real transformation begins.
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When Shana Dall’Osto reflects on her journey to launching the Roots & Wings Foundation, she sees a winding path—full of lived experience in education, public service, and nonprofit work—that ultimately led her to a simple but radical idea: trust changes everything.
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From her early days in alternative education environments to her time in the Peace Corps and AmeriCorps, Shana experienced firsthand how autonomy, flexibility, and mutual respect can empower people to do their best work. These core values are now the heartbeat of the Roots & Wings Foundation and its embrace of Trust-Based Philanthropy.
Before launching Roots & Wings, Shana worked inside the nonprofit world. It was there—on the other side of the funding relationship—that she began to understand how traditional philanthropy can often constrain more than it supports. She remembers being asked to expand programming without any increase in funding or staff time. Like many nonprofits, her organization had to chase grants that didn’t align with their core mission—just to survive.
That experience was transformative. She realized that the way funders approach giving directly shapes the behavior, focus, and capacity of nonprofits. And more importantly, she recognized that this didn’t have to be the norm.
The nonprofit starvation cycle was real for us,” she says. “I measured out the square footage of my office to make it all work. That experience stayed with me.
When Roots & Wings officially launched in 2020, Shana and her team built the foundation on a learning mindset. The plan wasn’t to dictate impact metrics or rigid grant deliverables. Instead, it was to listen—really listen—to what communities and nonprofits needed most. That meant flexible, unrestricted support, minimal application hurdles, and no assumptions that the funders knew best.
“We didn’t want to be too set in our mission or evaluation metrics,” Shana says. “We wanted to learn from the community.”
This flexibility was immediately put to the test when COVID-19 hit just months after the foundation’s launch. Instead of pausing or pivoting into analysis mode, Roots & Wings focused on one thing: getting funds out the door—quickly and with as few strings as possible.
“The end result is the same,” Shana notes. “Whether you go through a lengthy proposal process or not—the organization has the funds. The difference is the trust, and that changes everything.”
Having that flexibility and that trust helped me be a better student,” Shana recalls. “I see a mirroring there in how we now approach our nonprofit partners—trusting them to do their best work.
At the heart of the Trust-Based model is a different kind of relationship between funders and grantees—one built on mutual respect, humility, and honesty. For Roots & Wings, that means doing their homework before ever approaching a potential grantee, helping fill out the grantee’s application, and using existing materials (like annual reports) to stay informed instead of asking for custom evaluations.
“We try not to waste nonprofits’ time,” Shana explains. “If we’ve done enough homework, sometimes the funding offer comes on the very first call.”
With over more than 300 grantee partners and a lean team, Roots & Wings doesn’t rely on frequent check-ins to maintain strong connections. Instead, they focus on meaningful conversations built on trust over time—where partners can be candid about challenges as well as successes.
“You get so much more when you create space for honest dialogue. A grant report can’t replace that.”
Shana is quick to note that Trust-Based Philanthropy isn’t in conflict with being strategic. In fact, she believes it is strategic—just in a way that prioritizes equity, efficiency, and impact rooted in reality.
“It’s not either/or,” she says. “You can still evaluate impact and be strategic. But you’re not dictating the how, when, and what. You’re trusting that nonprofits know what they need most.”
And while the model is gaining traction, Shana knows there’s still work to do. She sees growing interest among newer philanthropists and next-gen family foundation leaders—but she also sees hesitation from more traditional funders who fear letting go of control.
“I talk about this every chance I get. It’s my soapbox,” she laughs. “I’ve spoken on panels about it. I’ve had funders reach out privately, curious about how to start. There’s interest, and that’s a good sign.”
The real proof of how funders’ investments truly support organizations in creating impact is if they help nonprofits deliver on their mission. As Valisa Smith, Executive Director of Start Early Washington candidly shares, “The Roots & Wings Foundation’s approach has been indispensable in helping Start Early Washington meet the needs of children in Washington state. The trust, respect and flexibility they continually show us has anchored our partnership to what is important for families, versus administrative requirements. We know that we have shared goals and values and that they want to learn and grow with us in this work.”
For Shana, this work is more than a job—it’s a dream come true. A role she once struggled to break into is now one where she’s helping to reshape the field for others. And every day, she’s reminded why it matters.
“I learn something new every day. It’s not always easy work, but it’s wonderful work. And it’s built on the simple idea that when we trust people, we unlock their full potential.”
Roots & Wings Foundation isn’t just practicing philanthropy, it’s reimagining it. And through their commitment to trust, they’re giving nonprofit partners the most powerful thing they can: the ability to breathe, to plan, to thrive.
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Trish Dauer’s path to nursing and home visiting wasn’t a straightforward one. With a natural inclination toward the human-centered aspects of healthcare, her journey was defined by exploration, adaptability, and a deep passion for connecting with people during critical moments in their lives.
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“I never set out to be a nurse,” Trish recalls. “In high school, I thought journalism or broadcasting might be my calling—I loved storytelling and learning about people. But as soon as I realized that public speaking made me queasy, I knew I had to rethink my plans.” She shared that her parents’ careers had also influenced her more than she had initially realized. “My dad was a firefighter, and my mom had started nursing school before shifting paths. Healthcare had always been in the background of my life, even if I hadn’t acknowledged it yet.”
A defining moment came when Trish had the opportunity to shadow a nurse practitioner in high school. It was a light bulb moment as she saw how science met human connection. “That experience cemented my decision, and I was determined to pursue nursing despite the daunting competition. I remember being told, ‘You need at least a 3.5 GPA to even apply.’ That was intimidating, but it didn’t deter me. I had found my path, and I was ready to fight for it.”
I realized what I loved most was the deep conversations—the moments when people really opened up.
Trish Dauer, State Nurse Consultant, Nurse Family Partnership Washington
Originally thinking she might want to be a labor and delivery nurse, one uninspiring instructor quickly changed that plan for Trish. “I realized what I loved most was the deep conversations—the moments when people really opened up.” That led her to adolescent psychiatric nursing. “My first job at an adolescent psychiatric facility was intense—I was barely 23 and suddenly in charge of a unit. But it was also where I learned how to truly listen. I have always been that person who friends came to and talked to about their problems, and I really like teenagers (a lot of people don’t!)” During an internship at Spokane’s Sacred Heart Hospital in the Adolescent Psychiatry unit before nursing school, Trish shared that her natural ability to talk with people about really hard things came easily, and the tough conversations became her strength.
Following nursing school and her first role in a private adolescent psychiatric facility, Trish knew she wanted something more structured. “I wanted somewhere I could grow. I flirted with the idea of emergency medicine but ended up in public health in Snohomish,” where an early supervisor recognized Trish’s ability to engage with people and encouraged her to start conducting home health visits. “Those first home visits were eye-opening. I drove into neighborhoods I’d never been to, stepped into homes where families were just trying to survive, and realized quickly—there’s no script for this job. Every visit was different, every situation unpredictable. I had no background in maternal-child health, but I knew how to talk to people, and that made all the difference. I found myself having some of the hardest but most meaningful conversations of my career—about postpartum depression, domestic struggles, and the weight of new motherhood. It was messy, but it felt like exactly where I was meant to be.”
Despite having no formal maternal-child health experience, she leaned into her strengths, supporting young parents and learning everything else along the way. That’s when she heard about NFP training and the structure and reasons behind home visiting practices seemed to make sense.
Parents can work through their personal struggles while still being present for their babies. We can hold space for both.
Trish Dauer, State Nurse Consultant, Nurse Family Partnership Washington
A year into public health, Trish found Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) and knew she had found her niche. The structured, evidence-based approach felt like the perfect balance of science and human connection. “The training was intense, but I was confident in my ability to connect with young moms and help them navigate their challenges,” Trish reflected. ”Parents can work through their personal struggles while still being present for their babies. We can hold space for both.”
After years as a home visitor, Trish now leads the Nurse Family Partnership model for Washington state. “Leadership in home visiting isn’t easy. Funding is always precarious, and I’ve spent more time than I ever expected fighting to prove the value of this work.” Trish recently testified before Washington’s Senate Ways and Means Committee in support of home visiting and preservation of recent budget adjustments to provide more inclusive funding for home visiting rates. “Home visiting is one of the best investments in preventive healthcare, but it’s still an uphill battle for recognition and stable funding. I’ve seen firsthand how early support changes lives, and I’ll keep fighting for that. This work isn’t about fixing people, it’s about showing them they already have the strength and resources to succeed. Sometimes, all they need is someone to remind them of that.
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Home visiting is a powerful tool for supporting families and communities, and the Washington State Home Visiting Core Competencies are an essential tool to support home visitors. The translation of Washington’s Home Visiting Core Competencies into Spanish, Chinese, Somali, and Arabic is a significant step in ensuring that the competencies are accessible to home visitors in the languages they use and prefer.
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“Created by the field, for the field, the core competencies are intended to be a ‘living’ set of resources that meet the needs of the professionals doing this critical work,” explains Cassie Morley, Assistant Director for Home Visiting at Start Early Washington. These core competencies were crafted with deep engagement from the home visiting community, with over 350 professionals helping to shape them, ensuring that they truly reflect the work and values of the field. “Those documents and those ideas really do belong to them,” Cassie emphasizes. “It seems only fitting that we would try our best to make sure they are available in the languages that that group of people reads and speaks and prefers to take in information in.”
Translating the competencies into these four languages was guided by the home visiting field itself, following the same collaborative and inclusive spirit in which they were initially developed.
By making these resources available in multiple languages, we are reaffirming the commitment to ensuring that all home visitors, regardless of linguistic background, can engage fully with the competencies that define their profession.
Cassie Morley, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF HOME VISITING, START EARLY WASHINGTON
These core competencies were never meant to be static documents. “They weren’t intended to sit on a shelf and gather dust,” Cassie notes. “They are for use by the people who created them.” Home visitors are encouraged to annotate them, add notes, and continuously reflect on how these competencies apply to their daily work. The process of refining and updating them is intended to be ongoing by design, informed by feedback from the field. Understanding how the competencies are being used will shape future revisions, with the ultimate goal being to ensure that they remain relevant and actionable, supporting home visitors in their mission to strengthen families and communities.
At its heart, home visiting exists to create trusting relationships between home visitors and parents. One of the clearest ways to achieve this mission is by hiring and supporting trusted professionals from within the communities being served. “What is synonymous with quality in home visiting is DIB (Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging),” Cassie states. “You can’t really pull those things apart.” The translation of the competencies is a direct reflection of this understanding—ensuring that home visitors from diverse backgrounds have the tools they need in the languages they are most comfortable with.
With the core competencies now available in multiple languages, the hope is that home visiting teams will actively engage with them. “I absolutely want home visiting programs to take them up, have discussions about them within their teams, and talk about the ideas represented there,” shares Cassie. “If they feel as if the ideas are important, I want home visitors and their supervisors to talk about how they are turning those ideas into action.”
By making the Washington Home Visiting Core Competencies accessible in Spanish, Chinese, Somali, and Arabic, we are not just translating words—we are reinforcing the values of inclusivity, and community-centered care. These competencies are meant to be dynamic, evolving, and, most importantly, used by the very people who shaped them. The more they are discussed, applied, and adapted, the stronger the home visiting field will be in achieving its ultimate mission: empowering families and communities through trusted, culturally responsive support.
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Play is often seen as a simple pastime for children, but play is far more than just fun. It’s a natural, powerful way for children to explore the world, build skills and lay the groundwork for future learning. In this blog, Claudia Cattage, a mentor teacher at Educare Chicago, a program of Start Early, shares insights on the developmental benefits of play-based learning, practical advice for parents and caregivers and tips for fostering a play-rich environment.
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Play isn’t just something your child enjoys—it’s an essential tool for their learning and development. Through play, your child learns about themselves and the world around them. Here’s how play taps into all the domains of learning, helping children grow in ways you might not even realize:
Not only is play fun and natural, but it also supports all the domains of learning, It gives a foundation for math, science, and even social studies.
The best addition to your child’s play is you. Your involvement can take their play to the next level. By observing their interests, asking thoughtful questions and providing materials that match their developmental level, you can help support their growth.
Here are some simple ways to make the most of your role:
If you’re busy, don’t worry—play doesn’t have to be a separate activity. You can incorporate play-based learning into your daily routines. Here are some simple examples that you can try:
Even everyday tasks like putting on a coat or tying shoes can be learning moments. Allow extra time for your child to try things on their own. These small moments build motor skills, confidence and independence.
Your child’s teachers can also be fantastic allies in supporting their play-based learning. We encourage families to build strong partnerships with teachers. Share your observations from home, ask questions and collaborate to set consistent goals.
The difference between a good classroom and a great classroom is collaboration with parents. By working together, you can create an environment that supports your child’s growth both at home and at school.
Many people think play is just about having fun, play is full of purpose and value. It’s easy to overlook how much learning happens during play if you’re not looking for it. One tip Claudia shared is to observe your child during play and write down what they’re learning. For example, sorting blocks might seem simple, but it’s laying the groundwork for classification skills they’ll need in math. Sharing these observations with other caregivers or educators can help everyone understand the true value of play.
Play is more than just fun—it’s a natural, essential method of learning that helps your child thrive in every developmental domain. By engaging in your child’s play, weaving it into your daily routines and collaborating with teachers, you can help them build skills, confidence and a lifelong love of learning.
So, the next time your child invites you to play, jump in—you’re not just having fun; you’re helping them grow!
Books About Play-Based Learning
Research and Ideas
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Together, when we start early, we can close the opportunity gap and ensure every child has a chance to reach their full potential.
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The National Home Visiting Summit offers leaders across home visiting an opportunity to learn and share about innovative practices in the field, build connections with each other, and leave with actionable steps to promote systems change. Our team heard from Jackie Cordova, HIPPY Program Director with Parent Possible in Denver, CO, about the impact the Summit has had on the work she does. Here is Jackie’s Summit story:
Registration is now open for the 2025 National Home Visiting Summit. We hope to meet you there and learn how you’re “taking the Summit home” to advance home visiting.
“Attending the National Home Visiting Summit has been a transformative experience for me, both as a home visitor and now as the HIPPY Program Director in Colorado. One of the highlights was facilitating a panel discussion with Spanish-speaking parents from Chile, Paraguay, Argentina, and the U.S. Hearing their stories deepened my understanding of the need for culturally responsive home visiting programs. This reaffirmed my belief in the power of family voices and the importance of representation in policy and program development.
A key takeaway for me has been the importance of collaboration across systems and regions to strengthen home visiting. The Summit helped me connect with professionals and advocates from different areas, which has motivated me to foster new partnerships and advocate for increased support, especially for underserved communities. My Capitol Hill visits allowed me to share my personal and professional growth journey and highlight the critical role of home visiting in early childhood development.
Since the Summit, I’ve started taking actionable steps to push for systemic change. I’m working to ensure that Spanish-speaking families are actively included in policy discussions and program improvements. Additionally, I’m committed to advocating for sustainable funding and broader access to home visiting services, which are essential for supporting the well-being of families nationwide.
The Summit has renewed my passion for driving meaningful change in home visiting, ensuring that every family has the resources and support they need to thrive.”
Join leaders like Jackie at this year’s Summit, from February 12-14, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Register now and we hope to see you there!
Jackie Cordova is the Director of the HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) program in Colorado. With over 13 years of experience in home visiting, she is passionate about supporting parents in their critical role as their child’s first teacher. Bilingual and multicultural, Jackie was born in the US and raised in Mexico, bringing a unique perspective to her work with diverse families. Through her leadership, she has helped elevate the voices of Spanish-speaking parents and advocates for the importance of home visiting at the local, state, and national levels.
The National Home Visiting Summit brings together system leaders, practitioners and advocates in a collaborative pursuit to advance the home visiting field.
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As our team plans for the 2025 National Home Visiting Summit set for February 12-14, 2025 in Washington, D.C., we’re inspired by the lasting impact of what attendees across the home visiting field learn and take back home each year to support systems change across programs, research, and policy.
The plenary sessions, workshops, and poster presentations at the Summit create opportunities for learning and connection. They also spark many attendees to share key takeaways and describe actionable steps to use their learning to transform home visiting at a systemic level from where they are in the field. For me, the Summit offers an opportunity to see the work I do in home visiting in Illinois as part of a wider system supporting families. The Summit enables me to bring home innovative ideas to support the field in my role providing training and technical assistance. My team and I have observed that other attendees at the Summit also share the inspiration and call to action I receive at the Summit.
Registration is now open for the 2025 National Home Visiting Summit. We hope to meet you there and learn how you’re “taking the Summit home” to advance home visiting.
Here are some perspectives from other 2024 Summit attendees that stood out to my team and me:
Feeling Seen and Valued by Summit content
Direct service providers shared:
I felt a huge takeaway from this year’s Summit is the redefinition of the word ‘professional’ in relation to home visiting. We’ve always acknowledged that families are their children’s first (and best) teachers, but at the same time we’ve not necessarily appreciated or translated that into the professional domain.
“Aha” Moments
Funders, systems change leaders and researchers remarked:
I really liked learning how others conceptualize home visit quality and how it should be understood in context based on community and family needs.
It is possible to offer flexibility and adaptability to the program, to services for families that can lead to and or be sustainable, especially for retention of the workforce and families.
Plans to “Take it Back Home”
Systems leaders in all capacities, from parents and providers to funders and researchers made plans to act based on Summit learning and connections:
I plan to take away the resources provided for funding. I will also work to improve staff satisfaction.
I will also be using the tool to disaggregate data to deepen my understanding of the story data is telling.
The Summit got me thinking about our data collection and how we might be able to restructure the collection and/or analyses with more of an equity lens.
Info on practical in-community advocacy workforce well-being considerations are things I will be applying to my work immediately.
The National Home Visiting Summit brings together system leaders, practitioners and advocates in a collaborative pursuit to advance the home visiting field.
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Picky eating is a common concern among parents, especially in early childhood. It’s a sensitive topic because food is deeply personal and essential for growth and development. Understanding picky eating, its causes, and how to support a child through it can make a significant difference in fostering healthy eating habits.
In this blog, Melanie Santarelli, our Health & Nutrition Services Manager, explores what picky eating is, why it’s common, strategies to support picky eaters, and dispel common misconceptions about children’s nutrition.
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Picky eating typically refers to a child having strong food preferences, refusing to try new foods, or avoiding certain textures or tastes. It’s a phase that most children go through during their development. According to Melanie, nearly every child experiences phases of picky eating. This behavior can vary widely from child to child, making it crucial for parents to approach it with patience and understanding.
While picky eating is usually normal, there are instances where it might indicate a more significant issue. Parents should consult their child’s medical provider to differentiate between typical picky eating and something that may require intervention. Regular checkups and open communication with health care professionals are vital in ensuring that a child’s eating habits are healthy and developmentally appropriate.
Supporting a picky eater involves a combination of patience, creativity and persistence. Here are some strategies to help:
There are several misconceptions about children’s nutrition that parents should be aware of:
Picky eating is a common, often frustrating phase in early childhood. During the holidays, having a picky eater can be even harder to navigate. Consider having a “practice” meal or having one of your child’s favorite foods at the table is an easy way to help your child feel more comfortable.
With patience, creativity, and the right strategies, parents can support their children through this phase and help them develop healthy eating habits. Remember, every child is unique, and what works for one may not work for another. Stay informed, trust your instincts, and seek professional advice when needed.
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As parents juggle professional responsibilities and family life, the pressure to find reliable, high-quality child care can be overwhelming. Liv Woodstrom, Start Early Washington Director of Programs reflects on the challenges faced by working families, the impact of child care costs, and the barriers faced by working families across the United States.
Liv Woodstrom has dedicated her professional career to supporting children and families. As a Pediatric Mental Health Specialist at Seattle Children’s Hospital, she helped families navigate the complex system of behavioral health. For the past 12 years, she’s been a leader in Washington state’s home visiting system, ensuring that expectant and parenting families have the support they need in the critical early days of parenting. She knows a lot about navigating the systems that support families. Yet, when she started her own family, like everyone else, she faced many unexpected challenges. According to a poll from NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 34% of families with young children are facing serious problems finding child care when adults need to work. For some families, the cost of child care exceeds 15% of their monthly income, and the percentage more than doubles for a single parent.
Navigating child care for two children is akin to walking a tightrope. As Liv shares, “I know about Early Achievers, I know about how to look for quality. I understand the landscape of early learning and yet it’s still an uphill battle to navigate.” Even for experienced early learning professionals, figuring out how to meet your family’s unique needs is a challenge and the stress of finding suitable care can hang over families for many years, taking a toll on financial stability and emotional well-being.
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Families deserve more support, and child care providers deserve more recognition and sustainable and thriving wages. When we come together to advocate for change, we can ensure that every child has access to affordable, high-quality care.
Liv Woodstrom, Director of Programs, Start Early Washington
Geographic limitations compound the problem. While some families have only one viable child care option within driving distance, others find themselves in child care deserts – areas with insufficient access to quality providers. Families resort to less conventional solutions, relying on family, friends, and neighbors to patch together care. And these child care challenges aren’t necessarily uniform. Liv herself lives in what’s known as a child care desert in South King County, and she knows the added stress this can have for families. For her, the reality of trying to address access and affordability for two children under age four has meant having her parents move in with her for the past two years and paying them in place of paying for traditional out-of-home care.
There are some bright spots and places where progress is forging a path forward. “Increasing child care subsidies eases the financial burden for more families, and we must also ensure that assistance reaches those who need it most”, shares Liv. This includes focusing on the child care and early learning workforce, who provide critical support for working families and are essential to the growth and well-being of young children. In addition, paid parental leave in Washington has allowed more parents to bond with newborns and reduce the strain on working families during those critical early months. For many families, parental leave provides an opportunity for several months of initial care by a parent. But then what?
As someone who has worked in family support for over two decades, Liv understands the uphill battle. “We know our current system isn’t working for many families and we know we deserve better. Families deserve more support, and child care providers deserve more recognition and sustainable and thriving wages. When we come together to advocate for change, we can ensure that every child has access to affordable, high-quality care.” Her message to parents is to remember, you’re not alone in this journey. Many families share your struggles, and collectively, we can do better.
Learn more about Start Early’s parental leave program and commitment to policies that support time for parents and caregivers to bond with and care for their children without jeopardizing their ability to afford basic needs.
Learn more about our work in Washington state and access relevant resources and publications.
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