| King County Activity
Puget Sound Taxpayer’s Accountability Account (PSTAA) Update
King County Council’s PSTAA consultant reports have been released and have been presented to Council. You can review the PSTAA Needs Assessment Report and PSTAA Strategy Assessment Report here. One more report is expected in January that we will share when available.
Many thanks to YDEKC members who have testified on the value of the PSTAA funds and how they could be effectively utilized: Mike Heinish from Kent Youth and Family Services, Dawn Raines fromTreehouse, Mark Putnam from the Accelerator YMCA, and Mahnaz Eshetu from Refugee Women’s Alliance to name a few.
YDEKC meets with the group of lobbyists that are working on a legislative strategy to protect the funds. If your organization is working on a legislative agenda, we ask that you consider adopting the following language:
Protect & Strengthen PSTAA for Improving Educational Outcomes for Vulnerable Children & Youth
The Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account (PSTAA), created with the passage of Connecting Washington, aims to improve educational outcomes in King, Snohomish and Pierce Counties for children and youth who are low-income, homeless, and/or in the foster care system, and other vulnerable children and youth. Approximately $518 million for education in the three counties will be collected and distributed between 2019-2035. Counties will receive proportional funding based on Sound Transit population and will determine use of funds at the local level. Work is underway to determine the best ways to invest these funds at the county levels. Advocates anticipate championing legislation in the 2019 session that will protect these funds for the life of the account and make technical changes, including adding specific language affirming the use of funds for facilities, bonding and endowments. |
|
Washington State Activity
Advocacy Day for Youth Development and Expanded Learning Opportunities
State Capitol-Columbia Room, 1/15/2019
Find more information and register here!
 October 2nd Lunching with Leaders with Elected Officials
Representatives Noel Frame, Javier Valdez, Daniel Lugo on behalf of Representative Mia Gregerson, and Senator Rebecca Saldaña joined over 25 YDEKC member organizations to share their legislative priorities for 2019 as they relate to children, youth, and families. YDEKC shared our priorities from serving foster and homeless youth, utilization of the PSTAA funds, and the legislative proposal for a Youth Development Work Group.
October 2nd Lunching with Leaders (L to R): Daniel Lugo, Rep. Noel Frame, YDEKC’s Hikma Sherka, Rep. Javier Valdez, Sen. Rebecca SaldañaOctober 18th Lunching with Leaders with Greg Williamson, Department of Children, Youth, and Families
Greg Williamson, Director of Youth Engagement in the Department of Children, Youth, and Families, met with more than 20 YDEKC members as part of his listening tour with stakeholders to consider how best to engage system-involved youth and how to best serve the unique needs of children, youth, and families across Washington State.
Nonprofit Advocacy Training with Washington Non-Profits
YDEKC hosted an advocacy training with David Streeter, Washington Non-Profits’ Director of Public Policy and Advocacy, on October 11th. Learn more about how nonprofits can advocate with policymakers using the training’s materials here.
Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF)
YDEKC is working in partnership with SOWA to on a legislative request to create a Youth Development Work Group. The goal is to develop a DCYF system and strategy for supporting prevention and promotion across the 5 to Young Adult age span to both prevent negative outcomes for youth and young adults and increase positive outcomes. Join us on Advocacy Day for youth development and expanded learning opportunities on January 15th, 2019 to speak to our elected officials about this exciting new opportunity in Washington State. You can review the draft of the proposed legislation for the Work Group here.
Washington Expanded Learning Opportunities Network
YDEKC is a member of the Washington Expanded Learning Opportunities Network. Our guiding principle is “Young people’s education doesn’t stop when the school day ends; neither should their access to high-quality learning opportunities. Quality expanded learning opportunities build lifelong skills, improve academic performance, and inspire young people to discover their individual passions. When expanded learning is supported to complement the school day, our state can narrow the opportunity gap and develop tomorrow’s leaders.” Learn more and join the Network here! |
|
City Level Activity
Seattle Issues
Family, Education, Preschool and Promise (FEPP) Levy passed overwhemingly!
The City of Seattle said “Yes” for Kids! YDEKC is happy to announce that the FEPP levy passed. We started our first Close the Loop campaign with this levy to keep track of the advocacy efforts of our members. By sending statements to families, highlighting the levy on newsletters, sharing the flyer on social media, organizing phone banks, and endorsing the levy, we made an impact. Thank you to Youth Care, Vietnamese Friendship Association, Treehouse, School’s Out Washington,Launch, Communities in Schools of Seattle, Boys and Girls Club King County, Arts Corps,Accelerator YMCA, and Community for Youth for participating in our Close the Loop campaign.
Now its time to roll up our sleeves for implementation!North Seattle Services Coalition Story Summit
A group of service providers have been working for over a year to evaluate the potential of theNorth Seattle Services Coalition. A Story Summit was held on October 25th to review an evaluation piece and to have a world café conversation opportunity to discuss next steps in the process. Council Members Juarez and O’Brien were present for a panel to respond to the information shared. If you are interested in becoming involved in the coalition work moving forward in North Seattle, contact Kathleen Cromp. |
|
| Resources
2018 Midterm Recap: Analysis and Implications for the Expanded-Learning Field
Webinar, 11/15/2018, 11:00AM-12:00PM
Every Hour Counts invites you to participate in a post-election discussion analyzing the election results, what they mean for Federal education policy, funding, and the broader implications for expanded learning systems. Register here!
Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) Community Meeting
Green River College, 12/10/2018, 10:00AM-12:00PM
The Department of Children, Youth, and Families will host a community meeting that will focus on how the agency is addressing candidacy and prevention with regards to FFPSA and the agency’s overall prevention framework. RSVP by emailing communications@dcyf.wa.gov using the subject line RSVP FFPSA 12/10. Notes from the meeting and further opportunities for engagement will be posed on the DCYF website.
Online Advocacy Training Videos
Washington Nonprofits is developing an online advocacy toolkit for programs and individuals to develop their advocacy skills and strategies at their own pace. YDEKC is partnering with Washington Nonprofits to contribute to this work. Stay tuned for the toolkit launch later in 2018! |
|
|
Copyright © 2018 Youth Development Executives of King County, All rights reserved.
Youth Development Executives of King County (YDEKC) is a coalition of youth-serving organizations working together to improve outcomes for young people.
|
|
|
|
