News and Insights

Originally published in the Winter 2023 issue of Kansas Child Magazine.  How Kansas Communities are Expanding Access to Child Care Many think the child care system is too broken to change. Kansas communities are proving  the naysayers wrong. Small incremental changes on the

Originally published in the Winter 2023 issue of Kansas Child Magazine.  As providers, we are often encouraged to advocate and become involved in issues that affect the children and families we serve. For a busy family child care provider, what does that look like exactly? When I started

Top 5 Policies to Promote Children’s Health in Kansas By Heather Braum, Health policy advisor, Kansas Action for Children. Originally published in the Summer 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Policy choices in Kansas can change the health outcomes of Kansas kids for the better — or

An Innovative Grant/Loan Hybrid to Attract New Providers By Kelly Gourley, Executive Director, Lincoln County Economic Development Foundation. Originally published in the Spring 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Like so many other communities across the state,  Lincoln County has

Kelly Davydov, Executive Director, Child Care Aware of Kansas. Originally published in the Spring 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. I’d be willing to wager that any working family with young children can tell you exactly how difficult it is to find child care right now. It’s even

By Bridget Banks, Child Care Health Equity Consultant Juneteenth (short for June Nineteenth), which commemorates the end of slavery in this country, is considered one of the longest-running African American holidays. It was officially declared a federal holiday in 2021. What Juneteenth

Bridget Banks, Child Care Health Consultant, Child Care Aware of Kansas. Originally published in the Spring 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Recruiting and Retaining Culturally Responsive Staff in Early Childhood Education Settings For the first time in history, we as a nation are

Child Care Supply and Demand in Kansas: What to Know and How to Be Part of the Solution A child’s earliest experiences lay the foundation for lifelong learning, well-being, and success. Quality early care and education opportunities provide the nurturing environments and relationships

Concordia School District Provides Child Care Through Community Collaboration By Krystal Breese, Director of Curriculum/Assessment, USD 333 , originally published in the Winter 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Early childhood experiences are the foundation for a student’s future

By MK Falgout, Research Assistant for Early Childhood Policy, Center for American Progress. Article originally published in the Fall 2021 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. For decades, America’s child care system quite simply has not worked. Families struggle to afford quality child care,

By Berni Howe, Lead Training and Technical Assistant Specialist, KCCTO and Tara Glanton, Training and Technical Assistant Specialist, KCCTO. Article originally published in the Winter 2021 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Elevating Provider Voices 2020 has been robust, with quick shifts

The Voices That Should Inform Change-Process In Our Child Care System By Peggy Kelly, Executive Director, Kansas Head Start Association. Originally published in the Winter 2021 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Long before COVID-19 completely redesigned our lives and view of what

By, Michelle Stover Wright, M.S., Evaluation and Research BUILD Initiative; Aisha Ray, Ph.D., Distinguished Fellow, BUILD Initiative; Sherri Killins Stewart Ed. D., Director of State Systems Alignment and Integration, Co-Director of State Services, BUILD Initiative Originally published in

By Teri Garstka, Associate Director, KU Center for Public Partnerships for the Spring 2021 Issue of Kansas Child magazine. It’s an exciting time to be a data enthusiast in Kansas!   We all want Kansas to be the best state for families to raise a child. To get there, we need

By Julia McBride, Vice President, Kansas Leadership Center Originally published in the Winter 2021 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine If you aspire to launch more creative child care solutions, you know you need to get par­ents and child care providers involved. Don’t delay! Too many