Ways to Advocate

Share your voices and help advocate for professionalism to help promote recieving higher wages and benefits for the Early Childhood field.

Seven Simple Steps to Advocate for Higher Wages:

  1. Speak Up! Share your Experience and Knowledge
  2. Build Social Capital
  3. Lead and Inspire Professional Learning
  4. Champion Quality in Early Education
  5. Know your Resources: Find Materials and Trusted Agencies within your Community
  6. Get Involved with Policy
  7. Vote with Early Childhood Education in Mind

Ways to Advocate for an Early-Childhood Professional:

  • Write down your story : Every perspective is unique. Your story can become a testimony, a letter to an editor, newsletters, a viral video, and so much more…
  • Pick up the phone: Call local officials and explain why you feel Early Childhood is so important and deserves the recognition, competitive wages and benefits.
  • Collaborate with peers: find individuals with similar interests. Join organizations that support the same cause or similar causes. Come together with individuals with similar beliefs and dreams.
  • Go to Meetings: Stand up and raise your voice at city council meetings, DCDEE meetings, a briefing, town hall meetings, a rally, or a service group. Get to know your leaders and partners- and let them learn about you.
  • Use social media: Facebook, tweeting, blog posts, social networks are all opportunities to stand up and speak out. Going viral is now a quick and effective way to be heard…
  • Continuing Education: Continue to research, learn about the field, and find new and upcoming ideas. Continuing to grow with the field will help with advocating. Policy makers want to know facts, not just feelings.
  • Donate time: Even if you are not actively working in the field, donation of time can help a lot.

Ways to Advocate on a State and Federal Level:

  • Get to know who makes decisions: Know who is on the key congressional committees, different agencies, local, federal and state legislators, and who is on their committees.
  • Connect with policy makers. Let them come in and see what we are doing. Find opportunities to have meetings with them. The more they know about the field, the better they will understand why what we do matters.
  • Voting matters: Know who the candidates are and who will help advocate. Also, do not forget to recognize the individuals who will stand up for creating the changes!