Voices for Children is a rally that is held annually at the State Capitol. This rally is for people to advocate for different childcare issues. On Wednesday, February 13, 2013, the rotunda was packed full of people. Childcare providers, organizations, families, and children made the trek through the bitter cold up the steps of the Capitol to bring a message to lawmakers.
The message that early childhood providers and families wanted lawmakers to hear was “Invest in children: the heart of Minnesota’s prosperity”. This event is important because it assures us that there is work being done to fix issues in the field of childcare and it lets us know that there are ways to make our voices are heard by our legislators.
Eleven students from the Early Childhood and Youth Development program at DCTC volunteered at this event. Their responsibilities ranged from opening the front doors of the building with a welcoming smile to handing out information packets to pointing people in the right direction to find out who their legislators were.
This event had activities for children and adults and started with everybody gathering in the rotunda of the capitol building to listen to “The Teddy Bear Band.” They played children’s music for everyone to listen to. After the band, there were a few speakers including Governor Mark Dayton and Katy Smith (2011 Minnesota Teacher of the Year and ECFE teacher in Winona).
At the end of the rally there was a scavenger hunt for the children to encourage people to become more familiar with the building. Participants had to walk around the capitol to find specific rooms where volunteers would be handing out free children’s books. Our group was fortunate enough to be part of this. The children were excited to be getting their very own books!
Participants had been encouraged to bring valentines made by children to give to their legislators. The papers that were handed out by volunteers included tips for talking with legislators. After the rally, there was time where people could write letters to their representatives and/or talk with them.
This event was a nice way for students to work together as a team, get together outside of the classroom, and be on the professional side of things.
Student volunteers from DCTC were: Bridget Sturm, Brittany Montreuil, Cat Determan, Elizabeth Shadeko, Katrina Warner, Lorelei Rein, Mandy May, Morgan Ruth, Nick Weimer, Stacy Peterson, and Sharon Morrison.
*If you would like to become an advocate for early childhood education in Minnesota, please visit www.thinksmall.org/community_engagement and click on “Take Action”
