FEATURED NEWS

A growing body of research shows that tax credits targeted to low-income families lead to better lifetime outcomes for poor children. The Children’s Agenda has long been supportive of both state and federal efforts to improve these types of tax credits. Pete Nabozny, Director of Policy, The Children's Agenda, explains…

There are key moments in a child’s development that act as the foundation for all future learning, behavior and health. Stress during this short window of time could lead to negative outcomes including developmental delays and even adult heart disease. What makes this moment in a child’s life so critical?

What is the so-called “school-to-prison pipeline”? Local organizations are planning a town hall event to educate the community about their concerns. It starts with school discipline, suspension levels, and expulsion.

E-News Archive

More than three-quarters of the brain develops in early childhood, before kids even get to preschool or kindergarten. That means that giving children every opportunity to learn, grow and develop from age zero is fundamental. And that’s why the Children’s Agenda Inc. was established some 15 years ago.

This is the second of a series of blog posts regarding the current RSCD budget situation. The Rochester City School District (RCSD) is currently looking for ways to save $30.1 million this year to make up for overspending in the 2018-2019 budget. In The Children’s Agenda’s first blog post we…

The Greater Rochester After-School Alliance (GRASA) on Thursday will partner with the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County, Healthi Kids, the Greater Rochester Summer Learning Association (GRSLA), United Way of Greater Rochester Inc. and the Children’s Agenda to host a “Lights On Afterschool” event.

KaBOOM!, a national nonprofit that works to ensure every kid and community have access to quality playspaces, has selected ROC the Future to lead a playground project here.

The Greater Rochester Community of Churches Faith in Action Network is celebrating 100 years of bringing together Rochesterians from different faith traditions. 

The Children's Agenda hosted a candidates forum Wednesday night.

The Greater Rochester Community of Churches is marking its 100th anniversary with an event that showcases faith and arts this weekend. The County Executive and County Legislator Candidate Forum will be held October 16 at the Schottland Family YMCA starting at 7 p.m.

The Children's Agenda will host a forum for county executive and County Legislature candidates at the new Schottland Family YMCA, 2200 Jefferson Road in Pittsford, from 7 to 9 p.m. Candidates will be asked to discuss child care, child abuse and neglect, programs for pre-school children, and other services for…

As the Nov. 5 general election draws near, local Hispanics are being encouraged to get out and exercise their right to vote.

Election Day is just over three weeks away. Voters have a wide range of issues that they prioritize. Guest talk about children in need in our community and funding for early intervention services and preschool special education services. The conversation comes in advance of an upcoming candidate forum hosted by The Children's…

An upcoming forum is looking to have county executive and county legislator candidates answer questions about county services for children and families. The County Executive and County Legislator Candidate Forum will be held October 16 at the Schottland Family YMCA starting at 7 p.m.

The second floor of the New York State Capitol is bustling as the governor works on his budget proposal, due in January.

Auditors from the state Comptroller’s Office have begun scrutinizing the Rochester City School District’s 2018-19 budget to figure out how the district spent an estimated $30 million it didn’t have – an endeavor the state predicts could take six months to a year to conclude.

Former superintendent Barbara Deane-Williams intended to push district finances to breaking point and force the state to increase funding as the crisis developed in plain sight over two budget seasons

Progressives and conservatives can agree that self-sufficiency is a worthy goal of social policy. That’s why policy wonks of all stripes support the Earned Income Tax Credit.

A couple weeks ago, the Rochester City School District (RCSD) reported to the City of Rochester and the Board of Regents that they had overspent their budget by a significant amount. This raised many alarms about the fiscal health of the district, and concerns about what cuts will be made…

Our Education and Policy Analyst, Eamonn Scanlon, examines the how an announced RCSD budget deficit may have come about and calls for transparency in future budget discussions.

A new report says the percentage of children living in areas of concentrated poverty has dropped in 29 states, but here in New York the numbers remain unchanged.

The current budget gap in the Rochester City School District is about $30 million, Superintendent Terry Dade said Thursday, less than originally feared but still a fearsome hole to fill.

Local, state and federal officials are now looking into how Rochester City School District officials overspent past their nearly one billion dollar budget. Sources tell News10NBC that the reported deficit for the 2018-19 school year is between $40 million and $50 million. 

Congressman Joe Morelle announced two bills on the federal level that aim to ensure children are vaccinated before attending public schools.

Tuesday. community members rallied against proposed cuts to SNAP benefits.

President Donald Trump wants to make major changes to SNAP, the federal food stamp program that thousands of local families rely on to feed themselves and their children. 

Proud to join Congressman Joe Morelle, Julia Tedesco from Foodlink, Jerome Underwood from RMAPI and many other community leaders calling upon President Trump to rescind proposed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) changes. As TCA’s Larry Marx said, " Every parent knows that hunger, meal uncertainty & inadequate nutrition deeply harms…

ROC The Future is giving big recommendations for parents. They urge parents to take a step back, take a breath and get your mind ready for back to school. It’s the first step to be in the right mindset according to the initiative. 

Our policy director, Pete Nabozny, discusses the impact of possible Trump administration changes to the SNAP benefit program. The result, according to the administration, will be the removal of more than three million people from the program.

Women of color make significantly less than white, non-Latino men over the course of their careers

The city has ended the public comment period for its first comprehensive plan since Bill Johnson was mayor in the 1990s.  Since Rochester 2034 was announced in the spring, people have had a lot to say about it.  The proposal will be released Sept. 9. The Planning Board will take further comment…

In New York State, black women earn 65 cents for every dollar a non-Hispanic white male makes doing similar work. A local group is trying to change that.

A new statewide coalition that launched Thursday, Raising New York, seeks to tackle the social, emotional, economic and educational inequities among the state's youngest residents.

The Trump administration recently issued a proposed rule that would remove food assistance from millions of Americans by making them ineligible to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits (formerly known as “food stamps”). Pete Nabozny, Director of Policy for The Children's Agenda, explains what it may mean for children…

As a collective, ROC the Future’s focus is to help each child reach his or her full potential. The nonprofit alliance works to promote alignment and focus of community resources to improve outcomes for kids in Rochester. Anchored by the Children’s Agenda, ROC the Future consists of a board of…

Heartbreak still lingers in the community after last week’s tragic accident at Tim Hortons on University Avenue where a little boy died after he fell into a grease trap. His story is highlighting the need for more child care options in the area.

While a child's death has focused attention on the lack of regulations for outdoor grease traps, it has also generated discussion about a continuing problem in the Rochester area: the lack of quality, affordable child care.

The Rochester Early Childhood Education Center attributes parent involvement to much of its success.

How will Monroe County’s decision to lower child care co-pays change what working families will have to pay for child care? Pete Nabozny, Director of Policy for The Children's Agenda, explains what it may mean to you.

Reducing the County’s requirement to pay 35% of income above poverty down to 25% is an important step in the right direction of affordability and quality care.

Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo says she’s reducing the fee that some low-income families pay for child care, from 35% to 25%.

Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo says she’s reducing the fee that some low-income families pay for child care.

With only about one in four youngsters in the Rochester City School District who participated in the lunch program during the school year taking advantage of free meals in the summer, the adults in charge of linking kids and food are looking for new approaches.

After 2 years, how is the “First 1000 Days on Medicaid Initiative” shaping up?

New York is one of the richest states in the nation, but a new report shows the state’s children are not sharing in that wealth. The 2019 KIDS COUNT Data Book ranks New York 42nd in the nation for the economic well-being of its children.

Even as preschool special education providers began inking contracts with Monroe County this week, the county has continued to clarify what those contracts mean.

Advocates are demanding Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo to keep her promise to thousands of children in the county in need of Pre-school Special Education Services.

Advocates for children with disabilities packed the Monroe County Legislature tonight over the funding crisis in preschool special education.