Connecting to Early Childhood Organizations

I chose three agencies in Illinois that I feel have strong missions regarding the I,prove meant of the caref for, services for, and lives of young children. I am very familiar with two of these agencies. The third is new to me, but looks like a very interesting and positive entity in Illinois.

The first agency I chose is actually my employer, Illinois Action for children, www.actforchildren.org. The mission statement of IAFC is "Illinois Action for Children is a catalyst for organizing, developing and supporting strong families and powerful communities where children matter most.". Their vision is to make children and families a priority in Illinois. They work to make this vision a reality by providing various sorts of financial and social assistance to children and families. It is impossible to write here all of the services they provide and all of the advocacy work that they do, so I highly recommend thT everyone take a look at their website.

The next agency I cose is the Illinois Resource and Referral agency, or INCCRRA. Http://www.inccrra.org. The Illinois Network of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies is a statewide organization which – in partnership with its 16 partner Child Care Resources and Referral (CCR&R) agencies – is a recognized leader, catalyst and resource for making high quality, affordable early care and education and school-age options available for children and families in Illinois.

INCCRRA provides free training for Early Childhood staff, grants for Childcare workers to go to school or to stay in their current schools, assistance and referrals for families, mental health services for children and much more.

The final agency I chose is Voices for Illinois Children, http://www.voices4kids.org. Voices for Illinois Children champions the full development of every child in Illinois to assure the future well-being of everyone in the state. They work with families, communities and policymakers on all issues to help children grow up healthy, happy, safe, loved, and well educated.

I am actually very happy in my current job, but am always looking for ways to provide better care and education to my students. I think that the most important trait to have for any jobs in these agencies is a passion for providing quality education to young children.