Raising Our Voices: Shaping Tomorrow
Check out a recording from our virtual gathering in June 2024
This past October, Governor JB Pritzker first announced the creation of a new state agency governing early childhood. Now that SB1 has passed in the House and Senate and will be signed into law by the Governor this summer, we're bringing the coalition together for an event to discuss what the new agency is, what this change means for infants, toddlers and expecting families in Illinois, and what advocates can do to further push Illinois to be the best state in the nation in which to raise a child.
During this event you will:
- Hear from policy experts, providers and families to get a holistic sense of what the Department of Early Childhood will mean for our early care and learning systems
- Hear about recent policy wins and how our Family Leaders and Champions made an impact
- Learn what you can do to advocate for our state's infants, toddlers and expecting families
During this event, participants asked questions we weren't able to answer live. We compiled those into a Q&A document that you can view now.
Community Conversation Toolkit
Resources created for your community to come together and discuss solutions to challenges families with infants and toddlers are facing today.
Raising Illinois invites you to bring together diverse individuals within your community and discuss the needs of infants, toddlers and expecting families in your area as well as steps that can and should be taken to strengthen your community's early childhood system.
Community Conversations can take many shapes and forms depending on who you invite and the size of your community. It is the conversation that is critical – not the format, size or location. To help get your planning started, Raising Illinois has created a handful of helpful resources.