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Pre-K Now Conferences
"Effective Advocacy in the Pre-K Movement" (2006)
Crafting communications strategies, building coalitions, and creating specific, winnable policy asks were the three topics discussed in "Effective Advocacy in the Pre-K Movement," Pre-K Now's 2006 national conference broadcast.
Here are additional resources and information about the topics and people featured during the broadcast. If you have a question or comment about the conference, please feel free to send us an email at conference@preknow.org.
View the Conference Broadcast
An on-demand webcast of the entire two-hour national broadcast is now available. Click on a link below to view the webcast with Windows Media Player (version 6.4 or higher required).
Get more out of the webcast by organizing a group to watch it together and using our conference materials to stimulate discussion and planning.
Featured Advocacy Campaigns
For more on the effective communications strategies used in Florida's Picture the Future project, check out:
For more on Tennessee advocates' coalition-building efforts, check out:
For more on Texas advocates' efforts to provide pre-k to military children, check out:
Featured Panelists
- Roy Miller, President, Children's Campaign, Inc. (website)
Roy Miller is the President of Children's Campaign, Inc., envisioned and founded in 1994.
Roy gained valuable experiences in a governmental relations and political consulting firm where he managed the campaigns of candidates affiliated with both major political parties as well as non-partisan races.
Roy helped to envision the UPK constitutional amendment, ran a pre-ballot campaign on the merits of the initiative, and continues to advocate for a high quality implementation. Roy is working too on raising public awareness for quality child care and early learning opportunities for all young children.
In 2005, Miller received the statewide Champions for Children award from the Early Childhood Association of Florida, affiliated with the NAEYC.
- Lana Seivers, Tennessee Commissioner of Education (website)
In January of 2003, Dr. Lana Seivers was appointed by Governor Phil Bredesen to serve on his Cabinet as Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Education. She brings a broad perspective to her role, having previously served as a teacher, principal, and superintendent. For most of her career, she worked in the Oak Ridge Schools where she specialized in elementary and special education and later served as director of early childhood education and principal of Linden Elementary School.
Prior to her appointment as Commissioner, she was Director of Clinton City Schools and served as chair of the East Tennessee Superintendents' Study Council, treasurer of the Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents and chair of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) Elementary and Middle School Committee. Seivers was one of two superintendents statewide to serve as a consultant for the Institute for School Leaders, a project coordinated by the state of Tennessee and Vanderbilt University and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Lana Seivers holds a bachelor's degree in education from Middle Tennessee State University, a master's degree in educational administration from the University of Tennessee and a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Tennessee.
- Leticia Van de Putte, Texas State Senator (website)
Senator Leticia Van de Putte, a pharmacist for more than 26 years, represents a large portion of San Antonio and Bexar County. A former-five term state representative, she is now serving her third term as a Texas State Senator for District 26. In 2002 she became the Chair of the Senate Hispanic Caucus and is currently the Chair of the Texas Senate Democratic Caucus. Nationally, Senator Van de Putte is a member of the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators, where she served as President from 2003 to 2005. She has also been actively involved in the National Conference of State Legislatures. She served as a member of the Executive Committee for three years and is currently serving as President of NCSL, as the first Texan and first Hispanic to ever chair the organization. She will also serve on the Executive Committee of The Council of State Governments through 2006. Senator Van de Putte currently serves as Chair of the Veteran Affairs and Military Installations Committee, and also is a member of the Senate Committees on Education, Administration, and Business and Commerce.
She is a strong advocate for children, veterans, improved access to health care, quality education, and economic development issues and has consistently authored and sponsored bills to assist families in securing opportunities.
The Senator was a Kellogg Fellow at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1993. She received her Bachelor of Science from the University of Texas at Austin, College of Pharmacy.
Feel free to re-use these conference materials for any future webcast viewing sessions. The dates on the documents are old, but the content is still fresh.
- Sign-In Sheet Template (8.5"x11")
This template can be customized by site organizers and used as a sign-in sheet on the day of the conference. After the conference, please mail or fax completed sign-in sheets to: Pre-K Now, Attn: Dale Epstein, 1025 F Street, NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20004. Fax: (202) 862-9870.
 Download the sign-in sheet template (44K)
- Local Site Agenda Template
This document includes an agenda for the conference broadcast program, to which you may add any pre- or post-broadcast activities planned at your site.
Download the site agenda template (56K)
- Conference Broadcast Program Summary
This two-page document will help familiarize site organizers and facilitators with the people and events featured during the live satellite broadcast. General conference participants do not need to read it.
 Download the broadcast program summary (78K)
- Site Facilitator Guide
This document is meant to help volunteer site facilitators understand and carry out their responsibilities before, during, and after the conference. A checklist of important tasks is included.
Download the site facilitator guide (80K)
- Worksheets for Local Discussion
The three worksheets in this document pose questions to promote discussion following each of the major segments in the conference broadcast. Site organizers or facilitators should make copies for each participant at their sites and distribute them on the day of the conference.
Download the worksheets for local discussion (44K)
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Tips & Tasks for State Advisory Councils
While reauthorizing Head Start in 2007, Congress added a new provision requiring every state to create or designate a State Advisory Council to better coordinate early education and care services. Pre-K Now has two new resources designed to help policymakers and advocates navigate the process of setting up Councils and seize the opportunities offered by them.
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Meeting the Challenge of Rural Pre-K
Families everywhere struggle to find high-quality pre-k programs for their children, but the problem is even more acute in rural areas. Pre-K Now has come out with recommendations for federal policymakers to help states meet the unique challenges of rural pre-k.
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Video: Briefing on America's Pre-K Movement
Pre-K Now held a briefing for congressional staff, cosponsored by Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Kit Bond, on October 1. Hear what a governor, three superintendents, two directors of early childhood programs, and a national teacher of the year think Congress should do to increase families' access to quality, state-funded pre-k.
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