FEATURED NEWS

  August/September 2023 Every one of us has a role to play in giving children the best opportunity to reach their full potential. Education is not only the responsibility of teachers; it takes the entire community working together, both within and outside of schools. Read on for how you can make a difference by advocating […]Read More »

In this episode, The Children's Agenda's Chief Executive Officer, Larry Marx, is joined by the President & CEO of the Children's Defense Fund, Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson ina discussion about the role of state and local policy when it comes to equitable education, health and life outcomes for children, especially the most vulnerable due to systemic poverty and racism. Additionally, Rev. Wilson discusses the upcoming observance of the Children's Sabbath, and local ties to the event here in Rochester.

The Children's Agenda has been closely studying housing instability and its impact on kids and education, and its report found lower grades and graduation rates are closely linked to unstable housing.

Housing instability hurts children's education. A new report calls for policies to limit the harm housing instability causes to children.

'Devastating' housing instability in Rochester with almost 38% of students moving or changing schools over two years.

“What we will see is more children who aren’t ready for kindergarten, more health issues for children and families, more food insecurity. We’ll be seeing more housing instability, and seeing a lot more mental health problems as a result of all of this.”

Access to nutritious food is vital. Free school meals will be available in Greece Central School District starting this fall.

As state lawmakers discuss how to reduce child poverty, the city of Rochester will soon open applications for a new grant to bolster savings accounts for kids to help strengthen economic opportunities for young New Yorkers.

Childcare across New York may see some changes this fall, as $24 billion in federal funding is set to expire.

  June 2023 One of the victories for kids we have had so far this year was getting kids under age four included in the Empire State Child Credit. What is it? Why does it matter? How did we win? What’s next? Read on to learn how, together, we are making a difference for about 800,000 […]Read More »

Toyin said the new telehealth services meant she could stay at work while her son was seen by a doctor. He felt well enough to return to class.

New school-based health centers plus telemedicine will expand access to health care for Rochester city school children.

Data show that suspensions are linked to increased negative attitudes towards school, lower math and reading scores, higher dropout rates, and most troublingly, higher likelihood of incarceration.

Research shows work requirements tend to reduce the population receiving assistance, while having little effect on the employment rate.

The Children's Agenda Director of Policy Pete Nabozny comments on the state's plan to invest $500 million in federal child care money on bonuses for child care workers and identifies long-term investments needed to rebuild the industry's capacity.

School is almost out, leaving some families wondering what they can do for summer childcare and what resources are available for them.

Childcare deserts are problems in many parts of the country. A recent dispute between a school district and a childcare provider has highlighted the issue in our area.

Get the latest news and take action with The Children's Agenda

We sit down with Assemblymember Josh Jensen to discuss New York’s 2023-2024 budget.

We sit down with Assemblymember Jen Lunsford to discuss New York’s 2023-2024 budget.

The Rochester City School Board approved the 2023-2024 school year budget at over $1 billion.

  April 2023 At The Children’s Agenda we are going the distance for kids. As you read this, the New York state budget is overdue. The budget has been our main focus since January and we won’t give up until the final vote is cast. Whatever happens over the coming days, there are some things […]Read More »

Suspensions at schools took center stage Thursday. People gathered in front of the Rochester City School District administration building to rally and march. It’s to support a bill that would limit student suspensions across the state.

On this episode, Larry Marx connects with ROC the Future Executive Director, Brian Lewis. ROC the Future is an affiliate of the national Strive Together Network of collective impact initiatives.

  March 2023 At The Children’s Agenda we work at multiple levels of government — from the Rochester City School District to the federal government. We also work on multiple issues that impact children — early childhood education and development, Pre-K to Grade 12 education, child health and poverty, and racial equity. Consequently, there is […]Read More »

State lawmakers and advocates have been pushing to have the New York State child tax credit for families increased.

Some lawmakers say the state of New York is failing young children, especially when it comes to vital early childhood intervention services.

New numbers support the much widely recognized need for mental health services for young people across the country and the state.

A parents' poll shows 40% say their children have struggled with emotional or mental health since returning to school in-person.

The Children’s Agenda is calling for robust solutions to what they say is a mental health crisis among children and teens – including improving access to care in schools.

In the midst of an ongoing mental health crisis nationwide, The Children’s Agenda, a locally based nonprofit, has released a new poll taking a deep dive on parents’ concerns surrounding youth mental health.

In this episode, Raising Rochester welcomes Aqua Porter, Executive Director of the Rochester-Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative (RMAPI). Aqua speaks with TCA CEO, Larry Marx about the role RMAPI plays in the community, how poverty impacts children in the city of Rochester, and how collective impact efforts are making a difference in poverty in our community.

New York needs to expand and strengthen its child tax credit to cut child poverty.

The Children’s Agenda reports only about half of the children who qualify for Early Intervention are receiving services in a timely manner.

A national assessment shows average test scores for elementary students across the country are down, but New York state schools saw an even steeper decline.

New York children with developmental delays are waiting longer than legally mandated time lines for services.

In place of passing Regents exams, students can demonstrate they have learned skills they can use in college and careers.

  February 2023 Parent leadership is at the heart of what we do at The Children’s Agenda. Through mutual trust and partnership, we combine parents’ lived experience with the policy expertise of our staff. From the Rochester City School District to the halls of the state capitol, we help parents organize and speak with a […]Read More »

Last week advocates from across the state of New York, including about 24 people from the Rochester area ascended on the state capital in Albany to lobby officials to adopt the Children and Families Reinvestment Act and move NYS towards a universal child care system.

The child care shortage starts with staffing. Providers have trouble attracting workers because of what they can pay.

Local parents and care providers delivered a collective call in Albany to further help infants and toddlers with developmental disabilities.

Suspensions might sound normal, but suspending students from school is an outdated and punitive form of discipline that causes harm and should be used as a last resort.

New York state allows students to be suspended for up to 180 days — an entire school year. As a result, thousands of students across the state have been kept out of school for a month or more, cut off from their peers and receiving just an hour or two of instruction per day.

Activists from around the state, including about two dozen Rochesterians, rallied in Albany to call for more state funding for child care.

Advocates headed to Albany to push for universal child care.

These are federally mandated supports, where children have a right to get access to these services within 30-days, however families are having to wait upwards of 12-months to get connected.

  January 2023 Budgets are value statements. Caring for our children is a fundamental human value, but in the United States we lag behind when it comes to translating that value into public policy. In 2021, only 9.4% of the federal budget was spent on children who make up 20% of the US population. At […]Read More »

The Children’s Agenda Education Policy Director Eamonn Scanlon makes the case for alternative disciplinary measures.

When most people hear school suspension, they think teenagers. However according to a new report - from the Children's Agenda, 15,306 from 15 area school districts were suspended at least once in the 2020-2021 school year. 606 of the students were in grades pre-k through third.

“For too many families, child care is a constant challenge to manage. Parents can’t afford to pay more for child care, but providers can’t afford to charge less,” said Nabozny.

The Empire State Campaign for Child Care say the final state budget must invest $1 billion to increase wages for the child care workforce

Gov. Kathy Hochul's vision to address the state's child care crisis continues to differ from several lawmakers as they prepare to begin this session's budget negotiations.

Preview – December 2022 E-News December 2022 When we invest in children, struggling communities become thriving communities. Over the past year we have achieved much for children — The Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council, with two representatives from Rochester, is now meeting. They will guide New York in reducing child poverty by half in the next […]Read More »

Attendees demanded that congressional leadership in Washington oppose any new tax breaks for wealthy corporations in their year-end spending bill unless passed together with relief for working families.

Community leaders in Rochester gathered Saturday, calling for Congress to expand the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit as Congress reviews their end-of-the-year federal budget.

Monroe County leaders and children’s advocates are calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to increase reimbursement rates for therapists and teachers working with children with development delays in the state’s Early Intervention system.

There is a call to the Gov. Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature to increase funding for early intervention efforts that could help infants and toddlers.

The Children's Agenda is pleading for the governor and state lawmakers to confront the shortage of service providers in the early intervention program for infants and toddlers with developmental delays or disabilities.

Nearly 100 organizations across New York are calling for a boost in funding for early intervention providers due to a backlog of requests for services for the very youngest in our state to access care.

State regulators require that Early Intervention services begin within 30 days of a plan being established, but there just aren’t enough providers to keep up with demand.

Across the state, approximately 1 in 5 children were living in poverty last year. In Rochester, that number spikes to nearly 1 in 2.

Preview – December 2022 E-News December 2022 When we invest in children, struggling communities become thriving communities. Over the past year we have achieved much for children — The Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council, with two representatives from Rochester, is now meeting. They will guide New York in reducing child poverty by half in the next […]Read More »

This week’s guest on the Raising Rochester podcast is Monica Graham. Monica is a parent of a 9th grader in the Rochester City School District and a committed advocate for parents in the district. She shares her experiences as a parent advocate, explains how she got involved in parent advocacy, and gives advice on how more parents can get involved as advocates for their children and all children in our community.

  October 2022 Smart choices. Bold voices. Those words exemplify everything we do at The Children’s Agenda. There is risk when we speak boldly, but those risks are necessary to speak up for kids. To drive effective change, we have to be audacious and pursue goals that others might see as too difficult. By being bold, […]Read More »

There's a new initiative in the works with a goal of cutting childhood poverty in half over the next decade.

The Children’s Agenda Education Policy Director Eamonn Scanlon makes the case for alternative disciplinary measures.

The Children's Agenda is calling for the end of suspensions for young children in New York.

One local group is offering up alternatives to suspending kids from school and calling for changes in the state.

Despite a stated interest in moving away from harsh disciplinary practices, local schools continue to suspend students at high and unequal rates, according to a report released Thursday by The Children's Agenda.

When most people hear school suspension, they think teenagers. However according to a new report - from the Children's Agenda, 15,306 from 15 area school districts were suspended at least once in the 2020-2021 school year. 606 of the students were in grades pre-k through third.

Parents are showing cautious optimism about the new school year. That’s according to new polling by the Children’s Agenda, which took responses from 600 parents in the region about the school year.

A group of local pastors and community leaders gathered on West Broad Street early Sunday morning outside the city school district central office building as part of activities for Children’s Interfaith Weekend.

Local faith leaders and community members gathered outside the offices of the Rochester City School District Sunday morning to renew their commitment to support the children of Rochester.

The Children’s Agenda is calling for an end to school suspensions for students Pre-K to Grade 3. 84% of Monroe County parents support solutions not suspensions.

New York’s Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) is still in the process of distributing federal money to child care providers.

The Children’s Agenda is calling for an end to school suspensions for students Pre-K to Grade 3. 84% of Monroe County parents support solutions not suspensions.

Parents are showing cautious optimism about the new school year. That’s according to new polling by the Children’s Agenda, which took responses from 600 parents in the region about the school year.

Preview – September 2022 E-News September 2022 Members of the Very Invested Parents (VIPs) group along with Parent Advocacy Coordinator Carmen Torres At The Children’s Agenda, we believe in the power of parents. That’s why, two years ago, we organized the Very Invested Parents (VIPs) advocacy group. This dynamic group organizes in the community and […]Read More »

Amanda Wilbert and Stacia Paganelli from Step by Step Pediatric Therapy Services join this week’s episode of Raising Rochester to discuss Monroe County’s shortage of Early Intervention services from a provider perspective. The conversation touches on their backgrounds, the importance of Early Intervention services for children and families in our community, and the workforce shortages affecting the sector in Monroe County and throughout New York State.

  August 2022 As New York’s children head back to school, each and every one of us has the responsibility to ensure every child receives a quality education in positive learning environments that support their success. That’s why The Children’s Agenda advocates for stronger schools that put children first. Educational success, however, depends not only on […]Read More »

New York’s Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) is still in the process of distributing federal money to child care providers.

Rural and upstate communities, like those in the North Country, lost the most child care. 

Families are in desperate search of childcare as more than 3,000 facilities close their doors in the state of New York.

We look at child care in New York with The Children’s Agenda which recently did a study of the state’s diminishing child care infrastructure

More than 3,500 child care programs closed in New York state, leaving thousands of kids unable to access the care they need.

The Children’s Agenda just finished a study on the current childcare situation across New York State.  It found that statewide, there are 1,326 fewer childcare programs than there were before the pandemic which amounts to 10,554 fewer spots for children with parents who need to work. 

As families in New York state are facing widespread shortages in childcare, The Children’s Agenda calls for greater support from the state.

Over 3,524 regulated childcare programs have closed across the state of New York with many of those being in home child services.

Democrats in Washington had big ambitions this year to boost child care subsidies nationally as part of a broad domestic spending bill. But with those plans stalled because of a lack of bipartisan support, some states moved ahead with plans of their own.

This week’s episode of Raising Rochester has been handed over to our colleagues at the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy. The Schuyler Center recently convened a discussion about “The Path to Universal Child Care,” and we felt the conversation would be worth amplifying through our podcast. This episode is hosted by Dede Hill, Director of Policy at the Schuyler Center. She is joined by Maria Whyte, Deputy County Executive of Erie County and Shanita Bowen, Director of Operations for ECE on the Move.

  July 2022 The Children’s Agenda is unique in that we advocate at the local, state and national levels. National policies have profound impacts for children locally. For example: Service Requirements: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires services be provided at no cost and in a timely manner to children with developmental delays and […]Read More »

With just days before the district's budget is due, there are still many unanswered questions as to what is and is not included in the final draft.

People across the country are searching for ways to support many of America’s children and young adults, who say they’re facing stress, anxiety, and depression. Remote school, shuttered activities, and family job losses during the pandemic often changed their lives – and their sense of well-being. 

Rachel Bonsignore is this week’s guest on the Raising Rochester podcast. Rachel is the Executive Director of Liftoff Western NY, an initiative to ensure all young children in Western NY are ready for Kindergarten.

Jenn O’Connor is this week’s guest on the Raising Rochester podcast. Jenn is the Director of Policy and Advocacy and Prevent Child Abuse New York. She and Pete Nabozny discuss a wide range of topics, including her background, Prevent Child Abuse New York’s work and recent legislative and policy changes affecting children in New York State.

  June 2022 Moral Documents Budgets reveal priorities and values. How cities, counties and states, school districts, and our nation as a whole decide to spend our money declares who matters.  That’s why The Children’s Agenda has since our inception 18 years ago, played a watchdog role for the next generation, advocating for what children […]Read More »

A long-term decline of the industry, pandemic-driven losses, staffing shortages and high costs have contributed to a child care shortage.

Close to 300 children are now waiting for early intervention services: help with things like speech and motor skills.

Sara Taylor is this week’s guest on the Raising Rochester podcast. Sara is a parent of a child with mental health issues, an advocate for parents and families advocating the mental health system, and the founder of BIPOC PEEEEEEK, a parent organizing effort. She shares her perspective on the state of mental health care for children in our community, inequities within that system, and news about an exciting project that she and other parents are attempting to launch in the fall of 2022.