Welcome to the third Networks of Opportunity for Child Wellbeing (NOW) Innovation Forum newsletter! Stay tuned for the latest conversations, stories and resources for advancing and promoting child wellbeing. Be sure to check your inbox at the end of the month to stay up to date. We look forward to connecting with you NOW and in the future!

Juneteenth: A Statement from Our Beloved Community

We belong to each other.

We will strive to learn from all of our history: the generations of racial injustice and the generations of resistance and uplift.

We will continue to listen to and engage more authentically with one another and welcome new allies.

We will work to transform all systems—judicial, education, health, social service—and institutional laws that disproportionately criminalize and police people of color. Reimagining systems of collective care that nurture and support communities.

Read more >>

In The Arena with NOW Podcast

• Episode 9: From Data to Action: Community Stories Lead to Policy Change: Learn from Children's HealthWatch on why community stories are so important for creating actionable change through policy. Hear their reflections about reframing narratives to design pathways to stable homes and expand access to Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) benefits.

• Episode 8: Residents Driving Change: The Community Solutions Grant Program: Learn from the Voices and Choices for Children coalition and their experience centering the dignity of children and their communities by unapologetically addressing implicit bias that exists in the fundamental mental models that have driven the system in which we live in.

Webinar:

• Register today! July 30 Webinar: Community Driven Policy Advocacy: Upholding the Dignity of Immigrant Children and Families. Join us for our next webinar which will highlight dignity and beloved community in policy advocacy praxis, specifically within the context of ongoing efforts to protect, uphold, and defend the dignity of immigrant children and families. Learn from advocates who are working to dismantle structural racism not only within the immigration system, but also public health, early childhood and other sectors, institutions, and programs that serve immigrant communities. 

• Webinar Archive: Operationalizing Equity Through Participatory Data Storytelling: View archive materials from our April 30 webinar, Operationalizing Equity through Participatory Data Storytelling. Learn from speakers who discuss why equity matters for data storytelling, share strategies for data visualization and participatory processes, and provide a virtual walk through of Vital Village’s Community Housing Data Tool and Child Wellbeing Tracker. Spanish audio and summary materials are available.  View archive >>

Latest Blogs

• Think Small Blog: Wake Up Everybody, by Dianne Haulcy. An incredibly powerful piece written by Diannce Haulcy the Senior Vice President of Family Engagement at Think Small. Read here >>

• Community Champion Spotlight: Catherine Luo, by Tiffany Rodriguez, Networks of Opportunity for Child Wellbeing. Take a moment to lift up the June 2020 Community Champion spotlight. Cathy’s leadership with the local Vital Village Network team inspires us each and every day. Read here >>

• The Forgotten Essential Workers: Women of Color in Child Care, by Lynette M. Fraga and Renee Boynton-Jarrett. This piece was co-authored by our very own Dr. Renee Boynton-Jarrett and was originally published in a May 2020 blog post on RealClear Policy. Read here >>

• Through the Eyes of Children in the Village, They See Community!, by Cathy Luo. Check out this blog post form the Vital Village Network blog that centers the experience of the youth who drive the Vital Village Network. Read here >>

• Submit a resource to the NOW Innovation Forum Resource Library. The resource library is a space created for you to lift up the work of yourself, your coalitions and your community. Share data tools, infographics, reports and other tools centered on advancing community equity. Submit here >>

• Addressing Racial Injustice with Young Children, by Embrace Race. This tool was developed by Embrace Race to help families facilitate conversations about racial injustice with young children. It includes an audio recording, a tip sheet and community questions.

• Anti-Racism and Resilience Resources ,by Vital Village Network. Check out this collective list of anti-racism and resilience resources created by the Vital Village Network.

• Race Talk: Engaging Young People in Conversation about Race and Racism, by Anti-Defamation League. Created by the Anti-Defamation League, this article is a tool that provides key steps for educators to engage young people in conversations about race and racism. 

#VillageinMind

The NOW community hopes to stay connected and lift up the work and stories of all of our members. Follow and tag us on Twitter, @NOW_WellChild & @Vital_Village, so that we can virtually highlight the community led transformation you are leading.