Our Voice for Children

March 2023

John, 

Thank you for your continued support for children and youth across the
United States. We are as committed as ever to young people and their
families and communities throughout the country. With your help, we
will continue working to build a nation where marginalized children
flourish, leaders prioritize their well-being, and communities wield
the power to ensure they thrive. Here are some notable highlights from
this year so far! 

Your impact in action

CDF President and CEO Addresses the Nation

CDF President and CEO Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson has had several speaking
engagements across the country, uplifting the voices of
America's children and youth to ensure their priorities are
front and center. These are just some of Dr. Wilson's recent
addresses. 

Atlanta, GA: During the 2023 Samuel Dewitt Proctor Conference hosted
in Atlanta, Georgia, Dr. Wilson moderated a panel of experts in the
faith community during CDF's "A Little Child Shall Lead
Them" forum.  Together, they discussed how to center
children within church advocacy with other community faith leaders.
Panelist, Rev. Eric Fisher, stressed, "We need a community where
children are subjects, not objects." 

Click here to learn more about how faith communities can address the
needs of America's children and youth.  
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Pittsburgh, PA: Last month, Dr. Wilson kicked off the Kelso Lecture at
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. He engaged in conversation about the
ways churches and communities can work together to facilitate
anti-racism in their neighborhoods.  

Rochester, New York: In February, Dr. Wilson spoke at the Spiritus
Christi Church in Rochester, New York, a city with one of the nation's
highest numbers of child poverty. Dr. Wilson further emphasized
churches and faith communities' vital role in lifting children from
poverty. 

Washington, D.C.: Dr. Wilson took to the steps of the U.S. Supreme
Court to advocate for student debt cancellation. He spoke on behalf of
the tens of millions of Americans that student debt relief could
impact, paving the way for the next generation to thrive and have
stronger economic mobility. "Cancelling student loan debt now is
necessary because access to the American Dream for my 7-year-old
daughter should not be caught up in her wracking with debt for another
generation." 

See Dr. Wilson's full speech!
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Defending Trans Children

CDF Freedom Schools® Training is Back on the Farm

After meeting virtually for two years, this January we said,
"Welcome home, welcome home!" to our CDF Freedom Schools
program executive directors and project directors who gathered at the
CDF Haley Farm for annual training. During this three-day event,
participants sang Harambee every morning led by our 2023 Ella Baker
Trainers in the Riggio-Lynch Chapel and engaged in hands-on workshops
to learn how to better serve the approximately 13,000 scholars
expected at CDF Freedom School sites across the nation this summer.

We are excited to announce that this summer we are gearing up for our
Servant Leader Intern training in June. We look forward to welcoming
over 1,500 college students from across the nation to the farm! 

Learn more about CDF Haley Farm!
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Your support makes a difference

CDF NBA Fellowship

This February, CDF announced its extended partnership with the NBA
Foundation. In its largest single grant to date, the NBA Foundation
has awarded CDF $3.6 million over three years to help identify
candidates and support program management for the NBA HBCU Fellowship
Program.??Launched in 2022, the fellowship provides career
development opportunities in the business of basketball for
undergraduate and graduate students from historically Black colleges
and universities (HBCUs). 
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Watch the promo video!
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Youth Justice: Just & Caring Communities

CDF-CA has been advocating systematically for redirecting resources
from outdated strategies into community-based youth development. 

CDF-CA's work resulted in defunding the school-based probation
budget by over $4 million. This money was reallocated to the Ready to
Rise
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program, which invests state funds back into the community through
diversion and youth development programs. 

In addition to redirecting state funds, CDF-CA has been vigilant in
making sure young people who are in California's juvenile
justice system are treated humanely. CDF-CA organized, pushed, and
achieved historic approval for increased oversight and inspections
around conditions of confinement.

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A large part was focused on demanding that probation cops stop pepper
spraying youth and children. CDF-CA Director of Youth Justice Policy,
Milinda Kakani, spoke with KPCC's Airtalk about the illegal and
immoral use of chemical agents against children. 

Listen to her interview!

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Ending Child Poverty

Last year, CDF-NY successfully advocated for the largest investment in
child care subsidies in New York State history-$2 billion to
increase the number of families receiving child care financial
assistance and the amount child care providers are paid for their
essential services. Data has shown that expanding child care subsidies
could help reduce child poverty in N.Y. 

This year, our New York office is continuing the fight against child
poverty by ensuring the state's fiscal budget takes into account
children and families from the most marginalized communities. This
fight included CDF-NY testifying at multiple state legislative
hearings regarding the state's executive budgets.  

Read CDF-NY's testimony below! 

* Housing  

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* Health/Medicaid 

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* Mental Hygiene 

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* Taxes Executive  

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* Human Services  

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Save the date: 2022 Proctor Institute

A Fiscal Budget That Feeds and Reflects Ohio's Children

Ohio's 2024-2025 fiscal year biennial budget process is
currently underway. As leaders of the Ohio Children's Budget
Coalition, CDF-Ohio spearheaded efforts with over 20 other statewide
advocacy partners to publish and distribute a book of recommendations
for Gov. Mike DeWine, his administration, the Ohio legislature, and
state leaders to consider in policy and funding decisions for the
two-year budget. Creating a Vision of Child Well-Being in Ohio
includes 15 issue briefs on a variety of child-centered policies and
priorities, from establishing a fully refundable state family tax
credit, providing scholarships to youth with experience in foster
care, and ensuring healthy school meals to all students at no
cost.  

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As part of the Hunger Free Schools Ohio Coalition, CDF-Ohio hosted a
press conference in February with education partners on the
importance of ensuring every Ohio student free nutrition. The press
conference included one of CDF-Ohio's senior policy associates, who
gave detailed data and information on the issue. Other speakers
included the president of one of Ohio's teachers unions, school
nutrition directors, a concerned parent, and a principal whose
students held a bake sale to cover mounting school lunch debt for
their peers.  
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Build a Legacy of Hope and Resilience

SRO Advocates for Families in the Mississippi Delta

Children's Defense Fund-Southern Regional Office (CDF-SRO) is doing
incredible work to help families in the South move out of poverty and
ensure their children have access to early childhood education.
CDF-SRO began this work in 2000 when supported by the WK Kellogg
Foundation to create partnerships to ensure children were ready for
school. Since then, they have worked with local school districts,
child care centers, and Head Start programs to provide services.
They also work on policies to increase investments in early
childhood education. 

This year, CDF-SRO continues to focus on families in the Mississippi
Delta by going into communities via a home visiting program. This
program involves learning advocates who work between public schools
and early education practitioners to prepare pre-K children in the
most marginalized communities to enter the public school system.
CDF-SRO is filling a crucial gap as State Director Oleta Fitzgerald
states, "In 2023 many school districts don't see early
child care as part of the education continuum. And many child care
[providers] don't see themselves as educators." This
month, SRO will release an evaluative report of these home visits
providing a blueprint for aligning early childhood education with the
needs of K-3 public education.  

Learn more about CDF-SRO's work!
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Build a Legacy of Hope and Resilience

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CDF-Minnesota: A Champion for Children and Youth

The CDF-Minnesota (CDF-MN) team is working to help ensure Minnesotan
children receive their fair share of Minnesota's historic $18
billion budget surplus.?CDF-MN is working with the Walz Flanagan
administration in its pledge to make Minnesota the best place in the
country to be a kid-regardless of race or zip code.?We are
pleased to report that all areas of CDF-MN's Advocacy agenda are
moving forward in the committee process. This includes permanently and
significantly funding community-generated solutions, ensuring no one
must choose between a paycheck and caring for a new baby or a beloved
family member, creating a new state child tax credit that reduces
Minnesota child poverty by 25%, and revolutionizing how child care and
early learning is done in the state.? 
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In addition, CDF-MN is currently providing technical support to its
two after-school CDF Freedom Schools® sites serving approximately
200 scholars at the CDF Freedom Schools sites at Academia Cesar Chavez
in St. Paul and Friendship Academy of the Arts in Minneapolis. The
team is gearing up to expand that support throughout the greater
Minnesota CDF Freedom Schools program network of 14 sites as they
prepare to serve approximately 1,800 scholars this summer.  Among
these include two American Indian and two Latinx-specific
sites.  

Build a Legacy of Hope and Resilience

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Texas Youth Demand Medicaid Expansion and Take Stage at the State
Capitol 

The CDF-TX health team, alongside partners from the Sick of it, Texas!
campaign, organized the first-ever People's Hearing for Medicaid
expansion. Last session, the Texas legislature opted not to hear a
Medicaid expansion bill, despite how badly Texas families need it and
how popular it is. Instead, CDF-TX and their partners brought the
public hearing to our lawmakers, highlighting the struggles of
uninsured Texans statewide. 

This fight comes to the doorstep of young people as Medicaid rules
change nationwide. Hundreds of thousands of Texans, including young
adults, are expected to lose their Medicaid. Without health insurance,
students won't be able to see their doctors, get vaccines, or
continue the medications they need to stay healthy and keep up with
their learning. The Texas office is working hard to reach people where
they are, make sure they're prepared, and connect them to
affordable health care options. 

Last month, Texas youth also took stage at the doorstep of the Texas
Capitol as part of the CDF-TX-led Our State, Our Stage event. Youth
performed on the Capitol steps, learned to use art in their
organizing, and shared their vision for Texas with lawmakers through
art. 
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Build a Legacy of Hope and Resilience

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CDF Staff on the Road and in the News

Join us in recognizing the work of our CDF staff, who have spoken in
all corners of the country! Their tireless advocacy to ensure a nation
where marginalized children flourish does not go unnoticed. 

CDF National Director of Movement Building Cemeré James gave
the opening keynote address at the Institute for Child Success at the
2023 Desmond P. Kelly, MD Nurturing Developing Minds Conference. James
stressed that making change means stepping out of our comfort zone.
"Finding your community is NOT finding your echo chamber."  

In February, Dr. Kristal Moore Clemons, national director of the CDF
Freedom Schools program, spoke at First Baptist Church of Hampton in
Virginia, announcing the launch of its CDF Freedom Schools site in
2024. Dr. Clemons was also featured in the Save the Children Action
Network's monthly webinar. She uplifted the history of Freedom
Schools and its origin in the deep South during the civil rights
movement.

In March, CDF State Policy Associate Rebecca Sheff co-led the panel,
"All In: How Educators Can Support Student Activism" at SXSW
EDU! 

CDF-TX Community Health Outreach Associate Crystal Marcial was
recognized for her work connecting pregnant mothers to health
resources in Texas which has the highest rate of uninsured people in
the country. Read more! 

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Sheri Brady, CDF's vice president of strategy, spoke about the
dire need to address child poverty in Rochester, New York, during an
interview with Evan Dawson of WXXI News. Brady highlighted the
importance of gathering information about child poverty directly from
the community and building connections. "Be in touch and stay
connected." 

Listen to her interview here!  

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With your ongoing support, we will continue to be on the frontlines
with America's children in 2023. With CDF's highly
anticipated 50th anniversary this year, we are more hopeful than ever
that this year will be a victory for children and youth! 


For our children,

Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson
President and CEO



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