Impact Fellows provided funding support to 15 states in 2024: Arizona, Colorado, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, and Virginia.
We measure the efficacy of our funding by analyzing outcomes in our three areas of impact.
AREA OF IMPACT #1
More pro-young children and family legislation and funding
- Fellows lobbied and leveraged lawmaking champions to protect $3.7 million and add $3.5 million in funding for a total of $7.2 billion for young children and their families. Fellows also helped secure 57 policy wins, 29 were in child care and the rest spread between preschool, child tax credits, wellbeing, paid leave, and home visiting.
- Over 3.8 million young children and families will benefit from these policies and funding.
In a legislative session characterized by advocates as a “budget bloodbath,” Healthier Colorado was told by lawmakers to be happy with accomplishing two of their four priorities. They actually achieved all four. The group successfully lobbied to expand the state’s Child Care Assistance Program, as well as new Child Care Tax Rebates, adding $2.4 million in appropriations and $700 million in tax credits to families with children.
The Kentucky Chamber Advocacy Committee helped get $126 million in funding for child care assistance that will directly impact 33,000 families and 54,000 children.
Maryland Rise’s lobbying helped lawmakers boost child care funds to $58.8 million, double the amount allocated on average for the past five years. The funds will expand subsidies to lift enrollments while also increasing subsidy rates and assistance for parent co-payments to serve 35,876 children.
Family Forward Action in Oregon faced a 35-day legislative session with a single, urgently needed priority–securing significant funding for the state’s depleted Employment Related Day Care (ERDC) program. The tumultuous short session produced a triumph for this program–$171M, but Family Forward Action didn’t stop there. They passed a new bill subsidizing child care for 300 families.
Virginia Promise in Action lobbying and media campaigns helped get an historic $1.4 billion for early care and education over the coming biennium: $693 million in existing funding and $732 million in new funding. The money will support child care
subsidies and mixed delivery preschool, serving 75,000 children that would have lost services due to the end of federal funding.
AREA OF IMPACT #2
More pro-young children and family political advocates, voters, candidates, and elected officials
- Fellows’ electoral advocacy and lobbying reached 18.9 million voters and identified more than 900 pro-Early Childhood legislators on record in support of early childhood policies.
Arizona Stand for Children reached 1.8 million voters through digital media, traditional media, and door knocking to turn out voters for pro-child and family candidates in 21 legislative primary races.
The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce registered 4.1 million digital impressions to get out the vote in 23 targeted State House primaries.
Maryland Rise reached 380,000 voters and did direct lobbying of the General Assembly to protect and expand child care subsidy funds.
NMVC Action Fund in New Mexico reached over 69,000 voters and endorsed 46 state legislative primary candidates who favored early childhood policies, 40 were victorious and moved forward as their party’s nominee. Thirty-four of the endorsed candidates were women and in 2025, women will hold 60 of the 112 legislative seats.
Ohio Kids First launched a candidate survey to identify key champions for the 0-5 population for all House and Senate candidates and published the results in a voter guide. They invested in seven state races and saw four victories.
Let’s Grow Kids Action Network (LGKAN) in Vermont endorsed 107 legislative primary election candidates, all of whom voted for ‘Act 76’ in 2023, providing $125 million to transform the state’s child care system. After winning 106 of the races, LGKAN then endorsed 43 general election candidates who pledged to support ongoing funds critical to making universal, quality child care available as intended by the new law.
One hundred eighteen candidates responded to Children First Action Fund‘s (Pennsylvania) Child Care Voter candidate survey. CFAF supported them in emails and direct mail to voters. Of the 118, 57 won their election.
Alliance for Quality Education in New York secured public commitments from 10 candidates to support early childhood policies and used 501(c)(4) actions like voter guides and direct engagement to influence candidate platforms. Of the 10, seven were elected to legislative office.
AREA OF IMPACT #3
More capacity for political advocacy foryoung children and families
- In over four years of existence, IFAF has created three new 501(c)(4) organizations (OH, VA, and VT).
- IFAF is close to creating two new (c)(4) organizations in FL and SC.
- Fellows collectively raised $2.7 million in 501(C)(4) funds beyond their Impact Fellows Action Fund grants.
- This year Fellows expanded their capacity by getting over 3,000 new staff and volunteers who engaged in 501(c)(4) political advocacy.
TakeAction Minnesota raised $575,000 in additional 501(c)(4) funding, increased their staff by four and added 103 political advocates to engage in their campaigns.
North Carolina’s Smart Start developed the Tri-State Learning Community, a cross-state group to exchange ideas and grow the Tri-Share models being explored or implemented in several IFAF states.
Tennesseans for Quality Early Education raised enough funding beyond IFAF’s investment to allocate significant in-kind support for their paid digital ad campaign in support of their Promising Futures campaign.
Healthier Colorado reported that advocates from Vermont spoke at a meeting for Gary Community Ventures (Gary) to share the Vermont story around increasing funding for and access to child care. The meeting was part of Gary’s process to build organizational support to push a child care ballot measure forward in Colorado.
Allons Babies in Louisiana was invited to speak about RoboText, a strategy they used to “out” members to chronic voters in their districts who were actively trying to cut early education.
