What’s New?

BLOG: Why making Babies Count is so monumental

Posted on August 1, 2018

Cecilia Zalkind, ACNJ president/CEO

The release of our New Jersey Babies Count was a culmination of an amazing journey by ACNJ and by me personally. It was a long time coming!

ACNJ is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. When we were founded in 1978, our focus was on children in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. It wasn’t until the late 1990’s that we began to think about expanding our agenda to advocate for children at an earlier time before problems became a crisis. I still remember the formal decision that the ACNJ board of trustees made to use our resources – both human and capital – to advocate for the health and development of young children.

We started our work with preschool. I feel privileged to have been part of the Abbott story, helping to create high quality preschool for 3 and 4 year olds in disadvantaged communities. ACNJ believed that this was the beginning of our work, not the end. We knew that learning didn’t begin at age 3, but much earlier – even before birth – and we were committed to developing an advocacy agenda for the very youngest children.

It took a while, but we have finally gotten back to that commitment we made years ago. In the meantime, we have learned so much more about what is needed for healthy growth and development, starting prenatally. We know more about the importance of supporting parents of young children and how best to do that. We understand the need for early health care – not just physical but mental and dental, too. We realize that child care does more than help parents work – it is a child’s first educational opportunity outside the family.

And we’ve also learned about the lifelong impact on children when those early years are fraught with poverty and trauma.

This is the purpose of Babies Count: to provide a clear picture, based on objective data, of how babies are doing in NJ – what we are doing well to support their healthy growth and development and what still needs to be improved. We want Babies Count to provide a roadmap for success and a benchmark to measure our progress.

As you will see in the data, the picture is not all positive. But I am hopeful, because we have already made a start.

Over the last few months, I’ve spent a lot of time with babies. I saw babies from every state at the national ZTT national Strolling Thunder event in Washington in early May. I was there with my son-in-law and grandchildren, who represented New Jersey on Capitol Hill. Later in May, ACNJ held its own Strolling Thunder day, bringing 150 babies and their families to the State House in Trenton. Many of you were there to join in that remarkable day. And our office was filled with babies last week for our first advocacy training for the Strolling Thunder parents.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many babies all at once! I was struck by the differences in personality, size and development. But I was also very aware of what they had in common. All were at a critical time of growth and development.

Just like the beautiful babies on the cover of Babies Count, these babies are at a critical moment in time – the time when everything is possible, when their potential is endless, when the future ahead is filled with opportunity.

It is our job – as advocates, as parents and as a society – to do all that we can do to make sure that their potential is realized, that possibility becomes reality, that they grow up to be healthy, happy, productive adults. Isn’t that what we all want for our children and grandchildren?

So the release of the report is about possibility. Find out the state of babies in NJ Babies Count and then partner with us as we carry out our campaign for our youngest children.

Ceil

 

ACNJ releases NJ Babies Count 2018, A Statewide Profile on Infants and Toddlers

Posted on July 31, 2018

For the first time ever ACNJ released a New Jersey Babies Count report that breaks down the data on child well-being to focus on children under age 3, tracking how well infants and toddlers are doing, who they are and the challenges they face.

Dr. Arturo Brito, Executive Director of The Nicholson Foundation, in his keynote, spoke about the science behind why we need to invest in the first few years of a child’s life.

Read Cecilia Zalkind’s reflection on why making Babies Count is monumental.

In the news:

  • Babies Count’ report finds some of state’s youngest start life at a disadvantage | NJTV
  • NJ Children Face Social, Health Barriers, Report Shows | Press of Atlantic City
  • NJ Politics Digest: Report Highlights Condition of the State’s Infants and Toddlers | Observer
  • The Babies in New Jersey Who Start Out with ‘Odds Stacked Against Them’ | NJ Spotlight
  • Why these Babies and Toddlers in New Jersey are Getting off to a rocky start in life | NJ.com
  • Some Babies In Jersey Have the Deck Stacked Against Them | NJ 101.5
  • ‘Babies Count’ report looks at the well-being of New Jersey’s youngest | Goerie.com

Want to make a difference for babies in New Jersey? Join the campaign to help make babies a higher state priority.

US Senator Cory Booker Discusses How Children Must be a Priority

Posted on July 23, 2018

Check out this special State of Affairs with Steve Adubato, where US Senator Cory Booker talks about the importance of making young children a priority and how the US lags behind in helping children achieve their greatest potential.

In New Jersey, we want to let our state leaders to know – the future begins with babies.  Join our Right from the Start NJ campaign to help make babies a higher state priority. Learn more.

 

Good News for New Jersey Kids and Families in this Year’s State Budget

Posted on July 2, 2018

Budget negotiations between Governor Murphy and state legislative leaders went down to the wire this weekend,  but there was always plenty of agreement when it came to issues affecting kids and families.

New Jersey’s $36.5 billion FY 2019 budget includes:

  • An increase in direct state aid to public schools, totaling $348 million. Governor Murphy also agreed to significant changes in how New Jersey funds our public schools;
  • An increase in funding to support existing preschools and expand our nationally recognized program to other communities, totaling $83 million, including:
    • $25 million to support additional districts that wish to expand preschool;
    • $25 million of continued funding for the 26 school districts that began expanding preschool in the 2017-18 school year; and
    •  $33 million of additional funds to the 31 former Abbott districts and 4 additional districts that have provided preschool for nearly 10 years;
  • An additional $27.2 million to increase the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to help low-income families;
  • An inclusion of a child care and dependent tax credit, which will provide families earning less than $60,000 financial help to care for their children or another dependent. The projected benefit identified in the Budget in Brief was $12 million;
  • An additional $250,000 for the Nourishing Young Minds Fund, which will be used by the Department of Agriculture to fund child food and nutrition programs throughout the state;
  • An additional $3.75 million to increase the cash payments of Work First New Jersey families by an additional $10 per month; and
  • An additional $1.1 million to cover the costs of removing the Work First New Jersey “family cap” and increase the level of family assistance resulting from an additional child being born to a family.

Even though the new budget includes plenty of good news, funding to increase access to quality child care for low-income families is again absent from this budget.  This is the 10th state budget with no funding increase for child care subsidies that help low-income families pay for child care for babies, resulting in child care providers not being able to afford to take care of babies and parents struggling to find care for their little ones.

A state budget that reflects the needs of working families must address access to quality child care, so that parents can go to work knowing their children are safe and in nurturing environments. Though there are many positive highlights in this budget, it leaves a critical need for low-income working families unaddressed.

ACNJ will continue to monitor budget updates and will keep you apprised as information becomes available.

Peter Chen and Cynthia Rice author OP-ED on new chronic absenteeism law for NJ Spotlight

Posted on June 28, 2018

Below is ACNJ’s OP-ED on the state’s new chronic absenteeism law, published in  NJ Spotlight on June 15, 2018.

OP-ED: STATE’S NEW LAW ON ABSENTEEISM — ONLY THE BEGINNING
by Peter Chen and Cynthia Rice

JUNE 15, 2018

Schools that succeed in reducing absenteeism go beyond just complying with state and district rules to encourage and support attendance as a fundamental part of their mission to educate

Cynthia Rice and Peter Chen

(On May 31st) Gov. Phil Murphy took a giant step by signing into law a bill that would make every school day count for New Jersey’s children. Schools with high chronic-absenteeism rates would be required to develop corrective action plans to improve their student attendance. Students are considered “chronically absent” when they miss 10 percent or more of their school days, putting them at risk for academic setbacks.

But these plans, while an important step, are just the beginning. Over the past four years, Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ) has travelled throughout the state, presenting on chronic absenteeism data, attendance strategies, and possible solutions. In a recent presentation, one school administrator remarked, “Anyone can develop a ‘plan.’ It’s what’s in the plan that counts.” She was right. Although the new law prompts schools with a chronic-absenteeism rate of 10 percent or more to address their attendance issues, it is up to each school to ensure that those plans are meaningful.

Sadly, high absenteeism is common in schools across New Jersey. According to New Jersey Department of Education data, in the 2016 – 2017 school year, about 10.3 percent of all K-12 students were chronically absent. In fact, more than 700 schools had more than 10 percent of their students missing too much school. Preschoolers, kindergartners, and high school students had significantly higher chronic-absenteeism rates than other ages, impacting their educational success. For young students, those absences can mean missing out on developing strong academic and social-emotional skills. For high schoolers, too many absences can place them at risk of not graduating on time.

Determining why students miss school

Although the negative impact of absences is clear, the reasons why each student might miss school differ. Under this new law, schools will have to determine the root causes of their high rates of absences and develop strategies tailored to the needs of their student population. Rather than focus on disciplinary action, the goal should be addressing the academic consequences of lost instructional time and creating a school culture that encourages attendance.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach that works, but schools that have dramatically curbed their chronic student rates share the following components of a successful attendance strategy.

First, they look at their data early and often, digging beyond the number of absences to find out the reasons for student absence. Some students might miss school because of health-related issues, unreliable transportation, or school and neighborhood safety. Finding out why students are absent must be the first step in any attendance plan. Additionally, looking at data by student demographic group may reveal pockets of high absenteeism in certain populations, such as students of color or students with special needs.

Second, the solutions these schools developed were tailored to address the specific barriers affecting regular attendance. Engaging parents and school staff is critical to understanding the needs of each student. For example, if a parent is not sending their child to school because of asthma flare-ups, the school nurse could assist in referring appropriate services to help the student manage their asthma.

Finally, schools that have succeeded in reducing absenteeism showed intentionality behind their strategies. Rather than merely attempt to comply with state and district rules, they went beyond compliance to encourage and support attendance as a fundamental part of a school’s mission to educate — a mindset shift that required staff commitment and community engagement.

Schools are only part of the equation to improving attendance, but what they do matters immensely. With a clear plan and a concerted effort, schools that are struggling with high absentee rates can make a difference in turning the tide. Students cannot achieve academic success if they are not present to benefit from the learning experience. Gov. Murphy has taken the first step; it is now up to schools to make every school day count.

Cynthia Rice, senior policy analyst, and Peter Chen, policy counsel, of Advocates for Children of New Jersey have led the work to bring attention to the problem of student chronic absenteeism in the state since the release of their first report in 2015, “Showing Up Matters: The State of Chronic Absenteeism in New Jersey.”