top of page

UPCOMING EVENTS

Check back soon for upcoming events!

RECENT EVENTS

LEAP Legislative Kickoff: Tent Event

Date: January 10, 2024 from 9AM-3PM 

Where: North Lawn of the Capitol Campus

Details: Join policymakers and advocates for lunch on the North Lawn of the Capitol under the tent! Learn about how child care affects our state's workforce and economy and what is being done in Washington and other states to address the child care shortage for families. And, join us for lunch from Taqueria la Esquinita Food Truck!

​

LEAP Bus Tour

Dates: Monday, July 31st - Friday, August 4th

Details: Through the Legislator Education and Action Program (LEAP) developed by The Association of Washington Institute (AWBi) and the Children’s Campaign Fund Action (CCFA), the two organizations are embarking on a statewide tour to promote education of and provide information about early learning and childcare.

Beginning Monday July 31st and ending Friday August 4th, we will be stopping at a center in each area for a mini-rally and host a roundtable discussion at an alternate location. Below is the overview schedule:

  • Monday July 31st-Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle

  • Tuesday August 1st- Mt. Vernon, Wenatchee

  • Wednesday August 2nd- Spokane, Walla Walla

  • Thursday August 3rd- Pasco, Toppenish

  • Friday August 4th- Vancouver

The goal of the bus tour is to provide elected officials, policy makers, and stakeholders with information about early learning and childcare so that they will be better informed in the policy making process moving forward. We will also hold regional meetings in some of the areas to gather information about the state of childcare in our state and develop a report after the tour.

​

Check out photos from LEAP's Kick-Off Reception on January 10 in the gallery below.

A recording of this event is available here.

Welcome Reception for New and Returning Legislators

Location: Association of Washington Business - 1414 Cherry St SE, Olympia, WA 98501

Date: Tuesday, January 10

Time: 8:00-9:30 a.m.

Details: Please join the Association of Washington Business and Children's Campaign Fund Action for an exclusive reception to welcome legislators for the 2023 session and kick off LEAP together! After light mingling and welcome remarks from our participating partners over breakfast, you'll hear a dynamic presentation about early learning and childcare from national experts Linda Smith (Bipartisan Policy Center) and Dan Wuori (Hunt Institute). Details about our keynote speakers are below.

A recording of this event is available here.

Linda Smith Headshot.jpg

Linda K. Smith
Director, Early Childhood Policy: Bipartisan Policy Center

Linda K. Smith is the Director, Early Childhood Policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington D. C. based think tank that promotes bipartisanship and actively works to find consensus and common ground on key challenges facing the nation. Ms. Smith is the former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Early Childhood Development at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS). In this role she oversaw policy priorities for children from birth to five years old, including the Head Start, Early Head Start, Child Care, and served as the liaison to other federal agencies, including the Department of Education. Ms. Smith’s served as executive director for Child Care Aware of America, supporting community-based agencies concerned with the care of children in their earliest years. Prior to this, Smith served as a professional staffer on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee under the Chairmanship of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy. Prior to this work, she was the director of the Office of Family Policy for the Secretary of Defense, where she was one of the primary architects of the military's child care program. Additionally, Smith held positions with both the U.S. Army and Air Force. Smith began her career in early childhood on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in her native state of Montana. She is a graduate of the University of Montana.

DW.png

Dan Wuori, Ph.D.

Senior Director of Early Learning: The Hunt Institute

Dr. Dan Wuori joined The Hunt Institute as Director of Early Learning in January of 2019, and became Senior Director in February 2021. He serves as a subject matter expert and oversees The Institute’s expanding work in the early childhood policy realm. A former kindergarten teacher and school district administrator, Dan served as the Deputy Director of South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness – the state’s comprehensive, public-private early learning initiative – from 2005-2018. In this role he worked alongside elected leaders to develop significant, bipartisan support for early childhood education and oversaw system innovations including the delivery of public prekindergarten in private, community- and faith-based preschools, improvements to the state’s IDEA Part C early intervention system, the creation of statewide program accountability standards, and the expansion of evidence-based home visiting programs. A Past President of the SC Early Childhood Association, Dan was honored as South Carolina’s 2018 Champion for Children at the state’s annual Summit on Early Childhood. He splits his time between Cary and his family’s home in Columbia, SC.

bottom of page