2023 Pro-Kid Policy Agenda for California

The "2023 Pro-Kid Policy Agenda for California" is the comprehensive state-level roadmap to ensure that all children have the necessary services and supports to reach their full potential. California has an obligation to end systemic injustices that create barriers to kids of color, as well as kids living in poverty, undocumented kids, and kids in the foster care system, from growing up healthy and ready for college, career, and civic life. This work has only become more urgent as the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to have a disproportionate impact on the lives of California's kids, especially children of color. Kids are increasingly experiencing stress, social isolation, and disconnectedness, and youth mental health issues have reached crisis proportions. In addition, the learning loss and lack of preventive health care because of the pandemic threatens this entire generation of children. Policymakers are urged to use the "Pro-Kid Agenda" as a guide to take long overdue action now to ensure California's systems for children are equitable, well-funded, high-quality, and accountable to kids' success. Doing right by all kids is not only the right thing to do, but it is also essential to state's future and ability to thrive. California's continued economic growth and strong democracy is dependent on a healthy and educated workforce. State policymakers need to make smart, strategic, and quality investments in California's children to address poverty and close the widening income divide. Working together, policymakers can build a California where all kids have the chance to live out their dreams. The "Pro-Kid Agenda" can help get there. The "Agenda" was developed by Children Now, California's whole-child research, policy development, communications, network building, and advocacy organization that covers the full range of children's issues prenatal to age 26, including early learning and development, TK-12 and higher education, health, family and economic supports, and child welfare. Children Now plays a lead role in more than 90 coalitions across the state and coordinates The Children's Movement of California, a network of more than 5,000 diverse organizations statewide, ranging from direct service, business, labor, youth, and parent organizations to civil rights- and community-based groups. [For "2022 Pro-Kid Policy Agenda for California," see ED617381.]