ONLY 21 states require students to attend high school until they graduate or turn 18.

Day care is slowly becoming night care in today’s economy, as parents work ever longer days, take on second jobs and accept odd shifts to make ends meet.

Tooth decay is completely preventable, yet the most common chronic disease affecting children, according to Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General.

The nine states splitting $500 million in Race to the Top early-learning grants must now deliver on a slate of ambitious promises to improve the quality of early-childhood education for tens of thousands of low-income children who rely on a patchwork of publicly financed child-care and preschool programs.

With states under pressure to cut their budgets and federal stimulus money gone, low-income working parents are facing a paradox.

Need recommendations on what types of toys are best?

In June, 2011 - the Early Childhood Leadership Commission developed "the placemat" as a supplementary resource that includes the Early Childhood Colorado Framework.

Mile High United Way presents the ELV Alliance Venture Fund to address the challenges facing early care and education in Colorado.

Early Learning Ventures Executive Director, Sue Renner, joins Mayor Hancock's Early Childhood Education Commission in Denver, Co. 

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), Prevention Services Division is pleased to release a summary of the 2011 Colorado Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Report.

Mile High United Way and State of Colorado’s Early Childhood Literacy Bus Tour attended a community discussion at an ELV Alliance in Colorado Springs with local, independent child care providers on the need for high-quality Early Care and Education (ECE) experiences for all children.

DENVER - Colorado's Lieutenant Governor has boarded a "literacy bus" to begin a listening tour in hopes of boosting up childhood literacy in our state.

A report released last week has drawn new attention to low degree-completion rates among college entrants, particularly among those who never attend full time. The organization that published the report, Complete College America, seeks to rally policy makers around the goal of substantially increasing completion rates by 2020.

But here’s a question: if we want to increase college completions over the longer term, is it more cost-effective to direct resources to college students or to preschoolers and kindergarteners?

I’ve been in the banking business for 14 years, and I’ve seen firsthand that the backbone of any business is its human capital — the skills and abilities of the workers who keep the company running.

Since our first conference four years ago, accomplishments in Shared Services for the ECE Industry have been plentiful and impressive, and we are eager to celebrate these achievements.  ELV is also eager to facilitate the possibilities for new and existing Alliances by providing access to practical tools, information and resources.

We propose the following governance plan designed to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and elegance of Colorado’s early childhood supports, services and programs. This plan further supports Colorado’s vision that all children deserve the opportunity to be valued, healthy and thriving.

ELV is proud to announce a partnership with a new Alliance:  Mile High Montessori Early Learning Centers in Denver, CO.  Mile High Montessori (MHM) is one of the oldest and largest providers of subsidized quality early childhood care and education, serving thousands of Denver’s vulnerable children every year since 1970.

About 2.3 million people earn a living caring for and educating children under age 5 in the United States, according to the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies. About 1.2 million of them provide child care in formal settings, like centers, home-based businesses, and community based organizations. The remaining 1.1 million caregivers are paid relatives, friends or neighbors.

The 2011 National Business Summit on Early Childhood Investment drew attendees from 34 states to Boston last week to share experiences and commit themselves to advocate for high-quality early education. The conference was convened by the Partnership for America’s Economic Success (PAES), which is managed by the Pew Charitable Trusts. (Check out the PAES guide to engaging business leaders.)

The National Smart Start Conference is the nation's largest conference devoted to early education systems and strategies. Lindsay Dolce and Sarah Paterson were invited to speak on Early Learning Ventures' Healthy Options for Preschoolers (HOP) program, a ground-breaking initiative designed to tackle the increasing obesity rates in young children birth to 5, and the structure and outcomes of an ELV Alliance.

Colorado is preparing to enter a familiar Race to the Top, but in a new category — early childhood education.  The state is eligible for up to $60 million from the federal Early Learning Challenge Fund which is part of the Race to the Top grant program.

The National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) and Early Learning Ventures congratulate Lindsay Dolce on her acceptance to the NWLC Progressive Leadership and Advocacy Network!  The NWLC is committed to improving the lives of low income women and their families. The NWLC Progressive Leadership and Advocacy Network (PLAN) program supports a diverse group of emerging advocacy leaders working to make positive change for low-income women and their families.

I am concluding my series on Shared Services Alliances in the Early Childhood Education (ECE) industry with this fourth posting on the National

On Tuesday, June 28, 2011, Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia toured two Early Learning Ventures Alliance at Arapahoe County Early Childhood Council affiliate child care programs in Aurora, CO.

In 2010, ELV secured grant funding from the Colorado Health Foundation to pilot a healthy foods program for the Alliances. This grant supports the development of a groundbreaking new food service program for Alliances to provide to their Affiliates. This funding provides support for a three year program to develop an out-sourced healthy food service model for the ECE industry.

Judy Williams, Early Learning Ventures Program Director, and Rosemarie Allen, Colorado Department of Human Services' Director of Child Care Licensing, attended the Global Leaders for Young Children World Forum Conference in May, 2011.

The health of many Coloradans is on the decline, most alarmingly among children across the state. Since 2006, there has been a steady increase in overall obesity rates for Colorado residents. Just as concerning, increases in obesity lead to chronic conditions including diabetes, hypertension...

Childhood obesity may be a hot-button health issue, but weight-related problems may begin before children start preschool. A new report, "Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Policies," from the Institute of Medicine released Thursday puts the spotlight on infancy and the toddler years, suggesting that child care providers, government programs and physicians be vigilant, noticing when kids are too large for their size, and promoting more activity and healthful behaviors to stop very young kids from gaining too much weight.

To learn about trends in military child care in the United States, Exchange interviewed Barbara Thompson, the Director of the Office of Family Policy / Children and Youth in the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

The better part of America is composed of entrepreneurs who seek a challenge, innovation, risk and investment. In fact, entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of the American economy.

Rosemarie Allen, director of the Colorado Department of Human Services Division of Child Care, was selected to represent the United States as a Global Leader at the World Forum in Honolulu, Sunday through Friday.

Babies and toddlers whose mothers have drug addictions can soon spend their days in a care center designed especially for them, while their moms undergo treatment nearby. The Baby Haven Therapeutic Early Childhood Education Center will celebrate its grand opening Friday. It is adjacent to The Haven residential treatment center on the Fort Logan campus.
 

WASHINGTON, DC— U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) today introduced the Supporting State Systems of Early Learning Act, a bill that would establish an Early Learning Challenge Fund to help states build and strengthen systems of early learning, so that more low-income children ages zero to five have access to high-quality early learning and development opportunities that prepare them for success in school and beyond.

Even as state and local governments take difficult steps to balance their budgets and address long-term shortfalls in their pension systems, they should not neglect the education and training programs that are the key to the nation's competitiveness, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke argued Wednesday.

How much do the decisions of parents matter? Most parents believe that even the most mundane acts of parenting—from their choice of day care to their policy on videogames—can profoundly influence the success of their children. Kids are like wet clay, in this view, and we are the sculptors.

America is falling behind. We have lost our ranking as first in the world in the percentage of young people with a college degree. We know that lower levels of education correspond with higher unemployment rates and more reliance on public assistance. In addition, we know that with nearly 25 percent of our own students failing to graduate from high school, many employers are hiring candidates from other states, leaving our own students behind in opportunities, wages and hope for the future.

The House of Representatives passed a sweeping child nutrition bill Thursday designed to promote better eating habits in part by giving the federal government more authority to set standards for food sold in vending machines and other venues on school grounds.