State Budget 

Central to Michigan’s Children work at the state Capitol is Budget Watch, one of our longest-running projects. 

With funding from The Skillman Foundation, Michigan's Children works to increase public awareness of the nature and scope of public investments in children and families in Michigan, and increase civic involvement in budget decision-making.  We do this by analyzing public spending and providing frequent written reports detailing the impact of state budget proposals and decisions on children and families through publications, electronic alerts and online. 

To read our Budget Basics reports, click here. 

 

 

Scientists have demonstrated that 85 percent of the emotional and intellectual wiring of the brain is formed during the first three years of life.  Children are born ready to learn and actually crave the positive stimulation that lets them do so. 

 Yet, despite increasing recognition of the importance of early childhood, state investments in early childhood education and family support have been stagnant or reduced.  

As a consequence:

• One of every five Michigan children under the age of six lives in poverty. 
• Young children are at higher risk of child abuse and neglect, and more likely to be living in foster care.
• Too many of the state’s children do not have access to the high quality preschool programs that have been shown to improve school success.
• Thousands of Michigan children are in child care settings of unknown quality and safety.
• Too many parents do not have the tools to be their children’s first and best teachers.

Michigan’s Children works with policymakers, community leaders and parents to advance public policies and programs that support families with young children in Michigan, including parenting education and support, child abuse and neglect prevention,  and access to high quality early learning programs.

 Investing in Early Childhood:

The First Step toward Economic Prosperity in Michigan

 Michigan's outlook is bleak: One of the nation’s highest unemployment rates; per capita income near the bottom; analysts expecting Michigan to be among the 10 poorest states when 2009 data are released. It’s predicted that even if Michigan’s economy begins to grow at the relatively rapid rate of the 1990s, it would be 2025 or 2030 before the state could replace the jobs lost this decade alone.

And after more than nine years of budget cuts and state government downsizing, we can expect yet another budget deficit in the fiscal year 2010-2011 of at least $1.6 billion.

Clearly, cutting our way out of this economic crisis is not working.  A new and bold direction is needed if we are to build an educated and skilled workforce to lead Michigan back to the path of prosperity. 

We must begin with our children -- our future workforce. 

Now is the time to grow the workforce of tomorrow by ensuring our children are ready to learn!

Collaborating to Improve Linkages between Early Childhood and Public Schools    

On January 22, 2010 Michigan's Children partnered with the Early Childhood Investment Corporation, Calhoun County Community and Early Childhood Services, and eight additional statewide organizations to provide a technical assistance meeting.

Twenty-six community teams of 3 to 6 members each from every part of the state gathered in Lansing for the day; an additional three communities participated via live webcast. 

Michigan’s Children was one of eleven first-round grantees from around the country to be awarded a Ready Kids, Ready Schools Ready Communities Planning Grant from the Communications Consortium Media Center, with support from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation.   

Community neighborhoods all over the city of Detroit are working to make their neighborhoods better places for children and families. Neighborhood teams are rallying around agendas for change, and working to make those changes reality.

One of Michigan’s Children’s top priorities is to ensure that all Michigan children are ready for post-secondary education, work and life.