The West Steps Colorado Children's Campaign

The Colorado General Assembly has officially adjourned! On our final episode of the 2023 legislative session, we hear from some of the Children's Campaign policy staff about how our priority bills landed this session. Senior Policy Analyst Megan Ives, Policy Analysts Lauren Corboy and Hunter Nelson, and Director of Family Economic Prosperity Initiatives Sarah Barnes join us to share how their work this session will have an impact on kids and families across the state for years to come.  
Read our full legislative impacts report on our website and stay tuned for more of The West Steps.  
Resources 
KidsFlash blog [Subscribe] Legislative Impacts [Learn more]  Support the showFollow the Children's Campaign on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

Recent incidents of gun violence in Colorado have once again called into light the need for a more comprehensive approach to school safety. By creating systems in our schools that address the root causes of violence, we can ultimately improve the long-term safety and social-emotional well-being of our students and teachers.    
Episode 9 of The West Steps explores school safety with Dr. Beverly Kingston, Director and Senior Research Associate at the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence at University of Colorado Boulder; and Leslie Colwell, our Vice President of Youth Success Initiatives. Our guests detail effective strategies for building safer schools, share policy success and current research moving this work forward, and describe steps we can take to prevent violence in schools. They also emphasize the need to bring many perspectives to the table when it comes to making decisions about improving school climate. As researchers, advocates, and policymakers continue their work on school safety, it is critical that young people's voices inform their decision-making to create lasting solutions that best serve our communities.    
 
Resources  
Kidsflash blog [Subscribe] Safe2Tell, 24/7 anonymous hotline to report safety concerns [Visit Safe2Tell] Children’s Campaign school climate policy work [Learn more]  Averting Targeted School Violence: A U.S Secret Service Analysis of Plots against Schools [Read the report] Safe Communities Safe Schools Model [Read more]  
 
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For more than a decade, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has required that health insurance plans cover a wide range of preventive health care services at no cost to patients. However, access to some of those services is at risk after a federal court ruled last month that the ACA’s preventive services mandate is unconstitutional in a case called Braidwood v. Becerra.  
The Children’s Campaign has been working alongside partners for years to help guarantee coverage of critical preventive services in Colorado statute. The Braidwood decision injects uncertainty into our health care system and makes this work even more essential.  
On Episode 8 of The West Steps, we dive deeper into the Braidwood ruling and the impact it could have on Americans’ access to essential health services. We hear from Erin Miller, our Vice President of Health Initiatives; Jack Teter, Regional Director of Government Affairs at Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains; Isabel Cruz, Policy Director at Colorado Consumer Health Initiative; and Eric Waskowicsz, Policy Manager at United States of Care.  
Our guests open the episode by sharing their favorite preventive service and describe how these services impact peoples’ lives. We then shift to a discussion of how the Braidwood ruling has the potential to impact Colorado kids and families if continuous work is not done to guarantee access to these services. We also discuss the recent passage of SB23-189, which will allow many Coloradans to maintain access to important preventive health services, helping to reduce health disparities and protecting families from unexpected, expensive bills.  
Resources 
Learn more about SB23-189 [Visit our Capitol Updates page] Subscribe to our blog [KidsFlash] United States of Care resources on Braidwood: https://unitedstatesofcare.org/braidwood-v-becerra-resources/ Preserving Coloradans’ access to preventive services amid challenges to the ACA - Colorado Children's Campaign (coloradokids.org)   
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We are now more than halfway through the 2023 legislative session! With only a few weeks remaining, the Children's Campaign is working hard to ensure that our policy priorities make their way to the governor’s desk. We continue to push for the renewal of the Child Care Contribution Tax Credit, increased access to the judicial system for evictions proceedings, equitable changes to our school finance formula, and expanded coverage for people enrolled in our public health insurance programs. This year’s Long Bill, which lays out the state’s budget, has  been introduced, and we are hopeful that our advocacy in support of increased funding for Colorado's Family Planning Program will be successful.  
Riley Kitts, our Sr. Director of Policy and Government Affairs, returns to The West Steps this week for a mid-session update. Riley provides an overview of where the Children’s Campaign priority bills are in their journey through the legislature. He also describes some of the political dynamics at the state Capitol. With so many new legislators in our state’s  General Assembly this year, it has been a critical period of relationship- building for the Children’s Campaign as we work to get our priorities across the finish line. We are eager to accomplish as much as we can for kids and families in Colorado with the time we have left! 
Resources 
Capitol Updates [Follow our Cap Updates] KidsFlash [Subscribe] Contact Riley to learn more! [Email Riley]   
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Play has benefits for people of all ages, but it is particularly important during early childhood. Play time, and unstructured play time in particular, is correlated with improved language skills, problem solving skills, and math skills. It also has been shown to increase physical health and alleviate stress. As Colorado develops quality standards for its new universal preschool program, set to launch in fall 2023, there is an opportunity to ensure that  those standards incorporate clear guidelines around developmentally appropriate play-based instruction.  
On this week's episode of The West Steps, we hear from current and former early childhood educators about the impact play has on child development. We are joined by Lauren Corboy, Early Childhood Policy Analyst at the Colorado Children’s Campaign; Ben Collinsworth, General Education Teacher at Emily Meschter Early Learning Center; and Chelsea Eneix, Pre-K teacher at The Goddard School. Our guests define play, detail the benefits of play for young children, and share what play looks like in their own classrooms. Lauren, Ben, and Chelsea also discuss what policymakers can do to ensure that play time is prioritized in classrooms. 
Interested in learning more about this topic? On April 6, join the Children’s Campaign and our partners from Save the Children Action Network, Clayton Early Learning, Early Childhood Council Leadership Alliance, Trust for Learning, and Raise Colorado to learn about the value of play in early childhood education. Researchers, educators, and advocates will share why and how you can speak up for more play time for Colorado kids. Register today! 
Resources 
KidsFlash Blog [Subscribe] Play More, Learn More webinar [Register]  Learn more about the importance of play [Read more here]  Support the showFollow the Children's Campaign on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

Last fall, Colorado voters approved Proposition FF to establish the Healthy School Meals for All (HSMA) program. This made our state one of three in the nation to provide universal, free school meals to all public school students. By reducing tax deductions at higher income levels, HSMA creates a fund to reimburse participating school districts for every meal served. HSMA also establishes additional programs that support schools in purchasing local food, paying cafeteria workers higher wages, and providing technical assistance throughout the implementation process. Advocates are hopeful that the passage of HSMA will prompt other states to work towards making school meals available to all students.  
Ashley Wheeland, Director of Public Policy at Hunger Free Colorado, joins us this week on The West Steps to talk about HSMA. In this episode, we learn how Proposition FF made its way to voters, what exactly the program does, and the many benefits that school districts and students will see by opting in to HSMA. Set to launch in fall 2023, this program is currently the most robust in the nation – positioning Colorado as a leader in combatting childhood hunger. With the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Emergency Allotments (EAs) set to end this month, more than 250,000 households and 499,000 individuals in Colorado will see a significant reduction in the amount of SNAP benefits they receive. This means the new HSMA program is even more critical to the food security and health of kids across the state. To learn more about Hunger Free Colorado’s work to combat food insecurity, visit their website.  
Resources 
HSMA website  Hunger Free Colorado  KidsFlash blog   
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