Facts In Action

Good-bye from Facts in Action

Dear Facts in Action Readers:

Over four years ago, Associated Early Care and Education introduced its newsletter, Facts in Action, bringing a new tool to the early education and care field. The purpose has been to connect current research and policy developments to practice and advocacy in the field to promote higher quality programs and bring new advocates into the early care and education community.

In those four years, we have produced 24 newsletters, created a website resource that houses a wealth of research summaries and past articles, and grown to reach an audience of more than 4,500 early care and education practitioners in Massachusetts and across the country. We have reported on a wide range of issues – from the latest research on using computers in the classroom to studies on the impacts of Head Start, from quality improvement initiatives around the country to changes in investments in child care at the national and state level. We have brought you information on what you could do to become more effective for the children in your program, and more active advocates both in and out of the classroom. Along the way, we have appreciated rich feedback from you, our readers, including suggestions on improving the newsletter to make it more practical and useful for all practitioners. We’ve also enjoyed your encouragement, positive feedback, and the stories you’ve shared on the creative ways you put the newsletter to use – whether by sharing it with other staff, copying it for parents, or distributing it to friends and family. We are certainly glad that this newsletter has been such a positive resource for so many of you.

Sadly, this will be the last issue of Facts in Action. In these times of budget cuts and increasing demand on foundation dollars, it has become impossible to find the resources to continue producing the newsletter.

This is a crucial time for advocacy in the early care and education field. At the national level, the presidential election coming in November promises to have great impact on the services we provide. In addition, in Massachusetts the legislature has taken the historic step of creating a new and independent Board and Department of Early Education and Care. This next year of transition will hold many opportunities for advocates to get involved and weigh in on important issues as the new department takes shape. So we urge all of you to remain engaged. Continue to share information with your staff, your parents, friends and family. Visit the Facts in Action website, which will remain at www.factsinaction.org, to find information on research and other past articles. Stay informed about the latest research on children and what’s happening at the local, state and national level – and continue to turn those facts into action to benefit children.

Thank you,
The Facts in Action Advisory Committee

Websites to help you stay informed

• National Child Care Information Center
  http://nccic.org
• Child Care & Early Education Research Connections http://www.childcareresearch.org
• National Association for the Education of Young Children
  http://www.naeyc.org
• Zero to Three
  http://zerotothree.org
• Better Baby Care
  http://betterbabycare.org
• National Head Start Association
  http://www.nhsa.org
• Massachusetts School-Age Coalition
  http://www.mass-sac.org
• Achieve Boston
  http://www.achieveboston.org
• NACCRRA
  http://www.naccrra.org

October 2004