Last Thursday night, Durham's Partnership for Children collaborated with MomsRising of North Carolina to host a Pizza and Paper Dolls Party at White Rock Baptist Church. Local families with young children came out to enjoy dinner and create life-size paper dolls of the children. The dolls will be displayed for the legislators as a reminder of the critical role high quality early care and education programs play in the future of our state. The dolls will be installed on May 23rd in front of the General Assembly. We hope legislators will recognize our message, that while the dolls may be two-dimensional, our children are not. North Carolina families support the quality early learning programs it takes to raise well-rounded children in our state.

Families were able to convey this message to two of our local leaders directly. With Representative Michaux and Senator McKissick in attendance, MomsRising and the Partnership had the chance to present them each with a paper doll covered in messages from families about their hopes for the early childhood system.

If you're looking for a way to get involved with early childhood, consider attending the Children's Advocacy Day this Thursday, May 17th. The day, organized by Action for Children and the United Way, will include training on key issues, guest speakers, and an opportunity to visit the legislators. For more information on the Children's Advocacy Day, click here.

For updates and details on the May 23rd installation of the paper dolls, keep following the Blog and check out our Facebook page!

Durham's Partnership for Children is partnering with MomsRising to throw a party for parents and kids to get together for pizza and paper dolls on Thursday, May 10 from 5-7:30PM at White Rock Baptist Church.

As parents and early childhood professionals, we know how critical affordable, quality early child care, access to preschool, and early learning programs are for all North Carolina families.

To call attention to the importance of children's issues, MomsRising is organizing a creative action for the May legislative session- "Toddlers Create Life-Size Paper Dolls to Encourage Legislators to Stand Up for Early Learning." MomsRising will display the dolls at the NC General Assembly along with facts, quotes from parents, and other information on the importance of early learning.

The message will be that while the dolls may be two-dimensional, our children are not. Well-rounded, quality care is critical to the future of each child in North Carolina. Join us on Thursday, May 10 to show our legislators that NC mothers and families support funding quality early learning programs. We'll supply dinner, paper dolls, and lots of fun! All you need ot bring is your child!

Thursday, May 10th 5-7:30PM
White Rock Baptist Church, 3400 Fayetteville St, Durham, NC 27707
RSVP to Beth@momsrising.org
Questions? Contact Beth at Beth@momsrising.org or 919.323.6179

The 2011 State Budget brought with it many changes, including massive cuts, to the early childhood system. The Partnership recently released a legislative update in which we aim to capture a snapshot of the impact those changes have had on Durham’s early childhood system.

The update outlines cuts to Smart Start (both statewide and local), changes to Smart Start scholarship funding, child care subsidy requirements, high-quality pre-kindergarten, and the star rating system.

»» Click here to read.