Washington Featured for Inter-Generational Services: Supporting the "Whole" Family

In a recent article published by the National Governor's Association, the topic "intergenerational poverty" and how lawmakers can help provide essential services for parents and children was featured.

Key anti-poverty strategies in communities that feel the effects of generational poverty (poverty that involves multiple generations, also known as the "Cycle of Poverty") include:

• helping low-income parents find work that provides family-sustaining wages, 
• fostering children’s school educational success, and 
• providing the necessary family support services.

The article highlights how important "two generation" strategies are for low-income families. This is something that DEL spends some time on, for example, within the home visiting program, there are services targeted specifically to parents and caregivers. To read more about the current state of home visiting, check out our recent blog on the topic: Home Visiting Spotlight. 

In the article, programs and states across the nation are commended for thinking of the whole family, instead of just programs and services that benefit kids.

"Experience suggests that two-generation strategies for low-income families hold promise when services—not just referrals—are provided to both generations, and when the services are intensive enough and of sufficient quality to produce positive outcomes."

By providing leadership and fostering collaboration across all state agencies (DEL, OSPI, DSHS and more--read more about the Washington Early Learning Partnership here: Washington Early Learning Partners Sign Joint Resolution) that influence low-income children and families, lawmakers can "develop innovative solutions for promoting the well-being of children and improving family economic stability."

One example that the article cites is the Community Action Plan (CAP) in Tulsa, Oklahoma. 

CAP Tulsa employs multiple programs that aim to prepare young children for educational success and increase the employability, earning potential, and parenting skills of their parents. CAP Tulsa coordinates and co-locates high-quality early childhood education with family financial, career-training, and health services. CAP Tulsa’s Career Advance program provides Head Start and other low-income parents with training in the health care sector, with the goal of helping them secure a good job with a family supporting wage while filling a critical workforce gap in the local economy.

While two-generational services are not new to the U.S. (the War on Poverty policies announced in 1965), there have been a consistent number of programs that do not receive legislative follow-through. The article suggests learning from past mistakes with these programs and celebrating programs that are currently working in several states. Washington was one of the featured states, as the article cited:

"Washington State has launched a program that uses Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds to provide home visiting services supported by strong evidence of effectiveness to families receiving TANF cash assistance. The program will track child and family well-being outcomes as well as parental employability."

Adopting a two-generation lens to serving low-income children does not necessarily require new programs and policies; rather, lawmakers can focus on strengthening links among existing programs toward a common set of goals for low-income children and families.The article warns:

"Lawmakers should be wary about assuming that two-generation strategies will work without significant attention to the quality of the services each generation receives and to the likelihood that those services will lead to improvements in families’ economic well-being."

Studies show that the well-being of low-income children is tied closely to "their families’ economic stress and overall economic well-being." Strategies that involve both parents or caregivers and their children have great promise to aid in overcoming inter-generational poverty.

To read the article, go here: States Employ Two-Generation Strategies...

Washington Early Learning Partners Sign Resolution and Host Brainstorming Session

In front of more than 1,000 early learning professionals and K-3 teachers, the Department of Early Learning (DEL), the Department of Health (Health), the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), Thrive Washington (Thrive), and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) signed a joint resolution, re-establishing their commitment to collaboration.

Washington early learning partners sign a joint resolution committing
to  collaboration in early learning
 at the Starting Strong conference in Tacoma.

Following this signing at the Starting Strong conference, the partners hosted a break-out session inviting input from the conference attendees on the 2015/2016 school year's priority strategies. These strategies are garnered from the Washington Early Learning Plan. The partnership uses these as a framework, as the strategies within the plan emphasize the vision that children in Washington will start life with a solid foundation.

Conference attendees visiting seven tables representing each priority and gave feedback. Participants were asked for ideas on improvement or ways the partners could accomplish goals pertaining to each priority.

The focused strategies were:

• “Build Continuum of Infants and Toddlers Services and Programs”
•  “Make Home Visiting Available to At-Risk Families”
• “Ensure Social-Emotional Learning – Parents, Caregivers, Early Learning Professionals; Provide Health, Mental Health and Social-Emotional Consultation in Early Learning Settings; Ensure Continuum of Social/Emotional Learning— Children, Expand Compassionate Schools – Reducing Effects of Complex Trauma”
• “Strengthen Public Awareness and Action”
• “Implement Comprehensive Professional Development and Compensation System”
• “Expand Early Numeracy Programs; Align Prekindergarten and K-3 Instructional and Programmatic Practices; and Implement Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (WaKIDS)”
• “Ensure Developmental Screening and Connections to Responsive Supports”

The strategies discussed were chosen based on the urgency or momentum of each priority. Each of these strategies is something that three or more members of the partnership will pursue jointly. 

The Washington early learning partnership hosts a
Starting Strong break-out session dedicated to
brainstorming on early learning plan priorities.

In addition, each agency is working on its own priorities in early learning, either as described in the larger ten-year plan, or to meet an emergent need.

In order to successfully carry out any of the 2015/16 strategies, the partnership must meaningfully engage a broad range of constituents and stakeholders, beginning with parents and other caregivers, and including tribal governments, federal, state, and local jurisdictions, and an array of non-profit, research, philanthropic and community partners, particularly those focused on leading for equity, and closing opportunity gaps. 

The partnership must include families in the decisions that affect them. With each strategy -- and throughout their work -- the partnership will focus on key questions, such as: 

• is it good for kids, families, and providers?; 
• do some benefit more than others?; 
• who lacks access and why?; 
• what data and information is missing?; and 
•  might there be any unintended consequences? 

In the preamble to the priorities, it states,

"We will drive our work to ensure equitable access and help to close gaps. Only by closing gaps will we be able to ensure a bright future for all children, families, and communities in Washington."

Special thanks to all of the attendees of Starting Strong and for all of the thoughtful and constructive brainstorming that occurred at the partners' break-out session!