NAEYC Advocacy in Action - Higher Ed "Do No Harm" Provision Explainer

Your Field. Your Voice. A proposed federal rule could make it harder for ECE degree programs to survive, and the Department of Education is accepting public comments through May 20. NAEYC is hosting a free webinar on May 8 from 1:00–2:00 PM EST to break it all down: what the rule actually means, why it matters for the field, and exactly how to submit your comment. No policy background needed.

Register for the May 8 Webinar.
Want to get a head start? Read NAEYC - our explainer before the webinar.

The National Institute for Early Education Research released its annual State of Preschool Yearbook, which finds that state support for pre-K hit record highs in enrollment, quality, and funding in the 2024-2025 school year.
https://nieer.org/sites/default/files/2026-04/2025%20NIEER%20Yearbook.pdf

Timely Tips to Safeguard Medicaid
https://healthlaw.org/timely-tips-to-safeguard-medicaid/?utm_campaign=Weekly+Newsletter+4.29.2026&utm_medium=email&utm_source=ctct

While the new JAMA study confirms early intervention’s beneficial effects for New York City children, the state's system is under immense strain. In a story I wrote for The 74 last fall, I found that early intervention providers in New York haven’t received a real raise in more than 30 years. That has led to an exodus of therapists in some communities and has caused some families to miss out on services entirely.

The California Department of Developmental Services produced two public service announcements to educate families of infants and toddlers about Early Start. One features parents of Early Start “graduates” as narrators and video of children illustrating typical early milestones. The videos may be embedded or downloaded to post on agency websites. Check them out here!

Find More Resources on the Neighborhood

SURVEY OPPORTUNITY FROM THE STANFORD CENTER ON EARLY CHILDHOOD:

Help spread the word to reach California parents of children under age 6 by sharing this paid survey opportunity with families in your networks.

The RAPID Survey Project at the Stanford Center on Early Childhood is listening to families with children under age 6 who live in California. This survey asks about experiences of food insecurity, SNAP/WIC access, healthcare, child care, parent and child well-being, use of transitional kindergarten, and parents' experiences with pregnancy and postpartum care. Take the paid,15-minute survey at this link: www.tinyurl.com/First5LA

Please reach out to [email protected] if you're interested in learning about how RAPID-CA survey data can support your work.

Examples of their research:

Announcements

Budget Updates

Federal Updates: The President released his budget-2027

Posted: May 5, 2026

Good news is that an additional $50 million is a proposed increase for Part C. The but is that there are proposed changes to IDEA - elimination of Preschool 619 program, and the 5 Part D IDEA grants - State Personnel Development,Technical Assistance and Dissemination, Personnel Preparation, Parent Information Centers and Educational, Technology, Media and Materials. These programs are to be combined into a " single state formula grant"- Part B Section 611 State Grant Program.
The budget request contains $15.4 billion for IDEA Part Grants to States over the current $14.2 billion in 2026. It calls for the consolidation of programs at the state level. The goal "to return education to the states by streamlining funding and expanding flexibility for States".