MY ROLE AS AN ADVOCATE

For this week’s assignment we were asked to respond to a set of questions from the perspective of the advocate each of us hopes to become in the future.  Here are my answers.

- What motivated you to start advocating for very young children?

I have been a licensed home child care worker for twenty-three years now and the decision to further my education so I could advocate for children and their families has progressed during the years.  The main motivation was an incident I had with one of the children enrolled in my child care.  This delightful three-year-old boy had been with me since he was approximately eighteen months old.  During this time he had been diagnosed with autism and his mother’s boyfriend was fixated for some reason on this young man being potty trained pretty much instantaneously.  One day this young man was sitting at the children’s table in my kitchen and basically asked me why his mom’s boyfriend hated him.  I asked him why he thought that his mom’s boyfriend hated him.  He replied because when he had an accident (bowel movement) in his diaper he was made to eat it to teach him a lesson not to go in his diaper.  Mom admitted this happened and the Department of Children and Families as called.  The investigator who came out stated to me that mom had taken back the statement she had given, and since the child had no voice, there was not anything they could do.  I replied that he did have a voice and she was not happy at this moment.  Ultimately I was able to get another person assigned to this situation.  I had no idea what I was doing at the time but had to try something.

- Why is it essential to acknowledge and foster advocacy efforts at the micro as well as the macro level?

It is essential to acknowledge and foster advocacy efforts at both the micro as well as the macro level as we, as advocates, need to be well informed on how to be effective on both levels.  On the micro level we engage more with the individuals and their families in order to solve their specific problem.  For example, helping to find housing, health care, family therapy, individual counseling, and other solutions would fall on this level.  On the macro level we would engage more with the large systems and may need to lobby to change a health care law or advocate for a large-scale social policy change.

- What does it take to be a community leader on early childhood issues?

I believe it is essential to have a passion and the drive needed for the work as well as for the people you are working with to assist.  Communication is also an essential characteristic.  Without positive communication skills it would be impossible to form an effective collaboration.  We also need to remember to listen and really hear what others are saying.  Everyone has something important to say in an effective collaboration.  Without this respect the collaboration will not be successful.  A successful advocate also needs to be committed to see the issue resolved.  There is no getting out if it gets too tough.  We need to each be committed to what we have started and stay until the end.

- What resources does it take to be a state leader on early childhood issues?

Sadly the first resource would be financial in nature.  Finding and maintaining funding is not an easy job at any level.  Though my experience is limited in dealing with grants, what experience I have has not been easy.  We also need a great network on a regional and local level.  As I stated above, communication is the key to success.  A state leader needs to know what is going on at a local level as well as a regional level with the people they are trying to advocate for.

- What tactics or strategies do you use to mobilize others?

Networking and passing along information and in turn getting information from others is the best strategy that I know of.  When you work with other individuals who are of like mind, passion and motivation, positive outcomes begin to emerge.

- As Robin Roberts stated in her interview, “the biggest obstacle is getting those that have never participated in the public policy process to do it for the first time” (zerotothree.org, pg. 4).  I know from personal experience that it is very hard to take that first step.  As a licensed home child care provider, I am used to be considered a babysitter not an educator.  It can be very difficult to break out of that stereotype and get the courage to speak up and have others actually listen to what you have to say.  Educating others to understand how important they are to the field of early childhood education is also tough at times.  Many individuals believe the stereotype and need a little help in overcoming it and finding their voice and passion.

Reference

Zero to Three Policy Center. (2008). Advocacy strategies to improve outcomes for very young children: Interviews with leaders at the state and community levels. Retrieved from
http://main.zerotothree.org/site/DocServer/AdvocacyLeaders_final.pdf?docID=1882