Building Bright Futures

Building Bright Futures (BBF) fulfills an essential role as Vermont’s early childhood State Advisory Council (SAC) mandated by state and federal statute to uphold the vision and strategic plan for an integrated system and serves as the primary advisor to the Governor and Legislature on the status of children and their families from the prenatal period to age eight. As a public-private partnership, only 18% of BBF’s operating expenses of $1.3 million are supported by state allocation, which does not cover the cost of executing the majority of statutory responsibilities that BBF successfully and consistently delivers. BBF improves the well-being of each and every child and family in Vermont by using evidence to inform policy and bringing voices together to discuss critical challenges and problem-solve.

The Alliance supports BBF’s request for the state to increase their base funding by $261,000 to adequately support the work of the SAC, Vermont’s Early Childhood Action Plan, and 12 Regional Councils required to respond quickly to critical requests from the Legislature and public and private community partners. The BBF infrastructure strengthens the whole early childhood system, particularly by leveraging resources; bringing in significant federal funding; and creating clear and compelling cases for further investment, reducing duplication, building agency capacity, building trust through collaboration, integrating service provision to address fragmentation, and maintaining an accountability infrastructure to monitor progress.

The Governor’s Recommended FY22 Budget proposed level funding to BBF. The House Human Services Committee recognized and valued the importance of BBF’s work on multiple levels, and supported BBF’s request for additional funding.

The House Committee on Appropriations unanimously voted to include the $261,000 funding increase in their FY22 budget, which was then passed by the House and will be considered by the Senate in the coming weeks.

Continue reading for more information on this priority issue, including data and talking points, connections to the lead organization, and advocacy tools.

Data and Talking Points

BBF improves the well-being of each and every child prenatal to age eight in Vermont and their families by:

• Providing data and being a key advisor to the Legislature, responding to requests to gather information for testimony and studies
• Engaging and elevating the voices of Vermont families and communities
• Building capacity of state agencies in gathering and providing information to the field through webinars and forums, and organizing providers within regions to fill gaps and directly support children and families
• Maintaining a network of over 450 early childhood leaders and stakeholders to articulate the vision of and make progress on Vermont’s Early Childhood Action Plan, our shared early childhood strategic plan
• Supporting early childhood emergency response throughout the COVID-19 pandemic

Resources and Advocacy Tools

• How are Vermont’s Young Children and Families – 2020 Report
• Vermont’s Early Childhood Resource, Data, and Policy Center
• Sample of legislative testimony provided by BBF on the State of Vermont’s Children and Families
• Vermont Early Childhood Advocacy Alliance 2021 Legislative Agenda
• Vermont Early Childhood Advocacy Alliance Issue Page – Building Bright Futures

Get Involved

• Sign up for the BBF newsletter!
• Join your local BBF community meetings or attend a Regional Council.  
• Join a Vermont Early Childhood Action Plan Committee

Schedule an Advocacy Training

Schedule an Alliance training for a group of early childhood professionals, providers, parents, or employers interested in strengthening their advocacy skills or learning more about the issues on the Alliance’s Legislative Agenda. Be informed and ensure your voice is heard on issues impacting Vermont's young children and families!

To set up a training, email Matt Levin, Alliance Executive Director, at matt@vecaa.org.