California’s Crisis: Ending Child Poverty
The recent Ending Child Poverty conference, co-convened by GRACE and The California Endowment in Los Angeles, brought elected officials, funders, and advocates together to focus on increasing economic stability for California’s children and families through policy. Several voices from the First 5 movement reinforced the message that policy, collaboration, and a focus on early education are critical in order to lower the state’s child poverty rate.
Conway Collis, First 5 California Commissioner and GRACE President and CEO, was a key driver for the event, which drew over 250 attendees. Hart Research provided a context for the discussions by sharing findings from recent polls, highlighting that reducing child poverty is a higher priority for California registered voters than reducing taxes – 61% of California voters say that reducing the number of children living in poverty should be an absolute top priority or a high priority for the state.
Congresswoman Barbara Lee was one of many speakers who highlighted the linkages between early education and economic opportunity: “We need to make universal pre-K a priority,” she urged. Kim Belshé, Executive Director of First 5 LA and a panelist at the conference, reinforced this with her comments, saying: “There is no anti-poverty investment more important than ensuring our youngest children arrive at kindergarten ready to learn.”
State Senator Mark DeSaulnier addressed the group as well, emphasizing that the rate of poverty in an innovative state with ample resources “is no longer acceptable.” DeSaulnier launched the Ending Poverty in California (EPIC) Caucus earlier this month, an exciting opportunity which the Association is eager to support.
First 5 county commissions are deeply engaged with efforts to support families struggling to meet basic needs. Commissions fund critical family support agencies that connect families to resources such as WIC, SNAP, and Covered California. We’d love to hear from county commissions that are actively exploring the intersections of poverty and policy with their own work. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with policy makers, advocates, and communities to ensure that young children in California grow up healthy, safe, and ready to learn.
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