News and Happenings

The tour makes a virtual stop in Richmond, where host Gloria Riviera learns how the community has built a public-private partnership to help subsidize a mixed-delivery model of care that helps families find programs tailored to their specific needs.

Literacy advocates are asking us all to face an uncomfortable reality: For decades, we’ve done a poor job of teaching children how to read in this country, and the widening gap in literacy is most apparent among our Black, Latino and Native American young people.

The tour stops in Denver to learn how advocates are advancing universal pre-k and how they’re working to fill the rest of the child care and early childhood education puzzle so children have robust support from ages birth to five.

Throughout the tour, New Mexico has been held up as the shining example of communities coming together to energize voters and pass funding for early child care. For over a decade, organizers worked tirelessly to pass a constitutional amendment which increased funding for early childhood education.

The tour makes a virtual stop in Texas to learn how child care and early childhood education advocates are working with business leaders and elected officials across the political spectrum to expand care options for families.

We meet panelists Councilmember Vanessa Fuentes, the representative for District 2 on the Austin City Council; Natalie Boyle, founder and CEO of Mommies in Need; and Sarah Baray, chief executive officer of Pre-K 4 SA, San Antonio’s award-winning early learning program.

The three panelists speak with host Gloria Riviera about tailoring solutions to fill the needs of communities across such a vast and diverse state and about how creating a child care center in a hospital not only addressed a critical shortage but also facilitated access to health care.

The tour stops in Detroit to highlight how advocates are expanding quality child care and education options for Michigan families; and how they’re advancing historic state investments in child care by promoting early childhood education as a public good, not a private benefit.

We’re back for Season 3, and this year, host Gloria Riviera is setting out across the U.S. to meet the people who are fixing the child care crisis. A lot has happened since Season 2, and in this episode, Latoya Gayle from Neighborhood Villages updates us about what we’ve been missing, including President Biden’s recent executive order on child care and what it means for you. Plus, Gloria and Latoya preview some state-level legislative reforms on child care we’ll learn more about throughout the season.

We’re back for Season 3, and this year, host Gloria Riviera is setting out across the U.S. to meet the people who are fixing the child care crisis. A lot has happened since Season 2, and in this episode, Latoya Gayle from Neighborhood Villages updates us about what we’ve been missing, including President Biden’s recent executive order on child care and what it means for you. Plus, Gloria and Latoya preview some state-level legislative reforms on child care we’ll learn more about throughout the season.

“The state of child care in America right now is hopeful.” While affordable, accessible, high-quality child care remains out of reach for millions of families across the country, Lauren Kennedy and Sarah Muncey, founders and co-presidents of Neighborhood Villages, see sparks of positive change in the year ahead. They talk Gloria through some of the big child care wins from the past year, explain why the Child Tax Credit was a total game-changer, and lay out why the next phase of this movement will focus on local action. Plus, Gloria shares some exciting news about No One Is Coming to Save Us Season 3!

What happens when a child care center supports not only its children, but its staff, its families, and its community, too? Gloria finds out from Jamal Berry, the newly-appointed President and CEO of Educare DC, an early learning program that provides free, high-quality child care to low-income families. Jamal tells Gloria how they’re closing the achievement gap using a holistic, two-generation approach, and what is possible with good funding, passionate people at the helm, and devoted folks at all levels. Plus, Jamal gets emotional talking about the person who inspired him to pursue a career in education.