For the past year, we've been working with the MA Early Childhood Funder Collaborative to build an interactive, accessible tool that maps the current ecosystem of supports for young children and their families across the Commonwealth. The early childhood field is complex and hard to understand, which has led to inaction in policy and funding and deeply embedded inequities and systemic barriers for many Massachusetts families. By mapping and describing the landscape for children 5 and under, we hope to help a larger audience understand where and how to support Massachusetts’ youngest children and hopefully move the needle for further investment and political focus on coordinating and improving the early childhood system. EC101 illuminates key programs and services, as well as equity considerations and systems gaps, not just in education but also in health, family/caregiver supports, community resources, and other fields, with the goal of developing a clear, accessible understanding of the current systems and opportunities for impactful policy action.
Join us on for a public launch for the EC101 website. This webinar will provide a tutorial of the EC101 tool, and introduce new advocacy platforms and agendas coming in the new year to advance the early childhood field. The website will go live promptly after the launch event, and we encourage all participants to spread it far and wide!