[Dec-advocacy] December 9-10, 2009 ­ White House Call-In Days

[Diana J. LaRocco]

The Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children
(DEC) 
 
 
DEC Asks for Your Calls/Emails!
Please Participate and Share with Friends
December 9-10, 2009 ­ White House Call-In Days
 
The Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children
(DEC) as an active member of the Child Care and Early Learning Coalition,
asks you to take a few moments and contact the White House today to ask the
President to include important increases to IDEA Early Intervention-Part C,
IDEA Preschool Special Education, Head Start and Child Care!
 
As an early childhood advocate, you know how important the federal budget is
to sustaining critical early childhood education programs. To make sure that
the FY 2011 federal budget includes the funds that these programs need to
support children and families, the early childhood community is joining
forces to contact the White House.
 
On Wednesday and Thursday, December 9th and 10th, advocates from across the
country will contact the White House to ask them to increase funding for
early childhood programs in the 2011 budget.

So why contact the Obama administration now? The administration is currently
working on its budget recommendations for the next fiscal year and we need
to make sure that early childhood programs are prioritized. The President¹s
budget sends a signal to Congress on what should be the top investments in
the next budget cycle --- ultimately setting the blueprint for what gets in
the budget. 
Please take action today by contacting the White House. There are two ways
you can contact the President:
* Leave a message for President Obama on the White House Comments line in
support of early childhood education programs. To call the comments line
dial 202-456-1111. (You may need to call more than once if you get a busy
signal.) Here is a sample script: My name is ________ and I¹m from (Insert
Organization) in (City), (State). Please help children get the strong start
they need to succeed in school by including a $3.7 billion increase for the
Child Care and Development Block Grant, another $3.7 billion increase for
Head Start and Early Head Start, a $400 million increase for IDEA Preschool
and a $500 million increase for IDEA Part C infants and toddlers with
disabilities and special needs.
 
* Send President Obama an e-mail in support of early childhood education
programs. To e-mail the President, fill out the form on this website:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact. Here is a sample message: Dear President
Obama, Please help children get the strong start they need to succeed in
school by including a $3.7 billion increase for the Child Care and
Development Block Grant, another $3.7 billion increase for Head Start and
Early Head Start, a $400 million increase for IDEA Preschool and a $500
million increase for IDEA Part C infants & toddlers with disabilities and
special needs. These programs help children learn and develop skills they
need to succeed in school and in life. They also help families get ahead by
giving parents the support and peace of mind they need to be productive at
work. Please make sure to include these increases in your budget
recommendations for FY 2011.
 
Please urge your networks and friends to take action on Wednesday and
Thursday, December 9th and 10th. The more people who take action, the more
our voices will be heard in this very important budget process.
 
DEC thanks you in advance for your calls and emails on this important
activity!
December 9, 2009
 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://www.cmslists.com/pipermail/dec-advocacy/attachments/20091210/638769c9/attachment.htm>