ADVOCACY UPDATES - JULY 2, 2008
Dear Child Care Colleagues:
A few updates as we head into the summer:
Thank you, advocates
Thank you to our many members who responded so quickly to our recent mailout. We appreciate your renewal and ongoing support! If you have not yet had a chance to renew your membership, or would like to make a donation to the Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada (CCAAC), for your convenience you can now do so securely online.
Advocacy Workshops
The CCAAC was pleased to present two advocacy workshops in May 2008 at the Early Childhood Educators of BC/Canadian Child Care Federation conference in Vancouver, BC:
- In the first session we discussed government’s public reports on child care, the opportunities for communities to track progress, and the limitations of relying on communities for this work. We reinforced the need for governments to develop public plans with timelines and targets for improving quality and access. You can access the Power Point presentation on our web site.
- The second session focused on school age programs, stimulating a thoughtful discussion about a child care service that has not received adequate attention in recent years. Of course, we’d hoped that improved services for preschool-age children would be well underway by now, so that we could move our focus to school age services! Participants stressed the importance of advocacy for school-age child care services, noting the need for specialized training to promote quality and a policy of entitlement to support access.
Advocacy in Print
- Quality, Affordable Child Care? Not in Canada … Thanks to Market Failure – oped by Lynell Anderson recently printed in the Ottawa Citizen and other community papers
- Who Cares About Daycare?… a Canadian crisis that affects every single one of us … - article in July 2008 issue of Chatelaine magazine
Supporting your Advocacy Efforts
- Check out our updated web site, now providing easy access to the CCAAC’s Core Advocacy Documents, Updates and Actions. For up-to-date information on child care research and news visit the Childcare Resource and Research Unit and sign up for the mailing list (link)
Summer Reading Suggestion for Child Care Advocates – The Sandbox Investment (David L. Kirp, Harvard University Press, 2007) describes The Preschool Movement and Kids-First Politics in the US. But of course, Canada is different than the US … or is it?
Wishing you a restful and rejuvenating summer!
Jody Dallaire, Board Chair