The West Steps

In a time when students’ needs are only increasing, school funding is more important than ever. Currently, the level of funding for schools in Colorado depends largely on property wealth. This is primarily an unintended result of how Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) amendment, which restricted the amount of revenue the state collected and spent, was implemented. Over time, this has creat...

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) are the two most effective tools we have to lift children out of poverty. But what are they, exactly? In summary, these tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in the income tax someone owes to the federal or state government. By either reducing the amount of money owed or providing refundable credits, these tax programs create li...

Kids exist in the context of their families, which is why it is especially important for our state and federal government to strive towards a well-funded, holistic, systems-based approach to health care and family planning access. The current patchwork system of family planning services in Colorado is not only inequitable and underfunded, but also demonstrates the negative impacts of racism in our...

Legislators often don’t hear from those most affected by the policies they choose to support. However, by sharing our personal stories, concerns, and experiences, we can be advocates for ourselves and our communities. As the pandemic continues to affect kids and families across the nation, it is more important than ever to speak up for the issues impacting those around us—and it doesn't’ take...

While food is a basic necessity we need to live and survive, it is so much more than that when considering a child’s social, emotional, and cognitive development. One  in seven  Colorado kids faced hunger before the pandemic, and this number has only worsened in the past year. Approximately 38 percent of Coloradans are food insecure, the greatest rate since the Great Depression. The economic downt...

The coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated the adage “everyone relies on someone who relies on child care” is more true than ever. Both our emergency response and economic recovery hinge on child care. When our essential workforce lacks access to child care, staffing shortages in health care, food service, agriculture, and emergency response are likely. But our child care providers have worked dili...

Welcome back to The West Steps. Season 3 kicks off with a conversation of the 2021 legislative session and the new power dynamics, opportunities, and obstacles accompanying political affairs in the midst of a global pandemic. Riley Kitts, Government Affairs Director , joins us on episode one for an informative overview of the current state of politics in Colorado, and ways in which Coloradans can...

Opening a child care center is hard enough in normal times. But with the economic and health crisis of COVID-19, starting a care center becomes truly monumental task. This week on The West Steps, our special guest takes us through the challenges and barriers child care providers face in the time of the coronavirus. Support the show Follow the Children's Campaign on Instagram , Facebook , Twit...

“Everything we see we have designed. And everything we see, we can redesign.” At the Children’s Campaign we work every day on changing systems to be more just. But we are also a group of individuals taking individual steps to move our communities toward racial justice. We are in the fight for the Black Lives Matter movement to ensure our collective liberation. We offer these reflections on our jou...

Kids of all ages, geographies and backgrounds use the Internet. They have smart phones and get online whenever and wherever they can—except at home. Limited or no broadband Internet access in the home i challenging for many families right now who are trying to educate their kids remotely. Colorado data show that children of color are more likely to live in homes without internet access or with lim...

A few months ago, state legislators had a budget surplus and plans to improve public systems for children and families. Now they are faced with at least a $3 billion shortfall and the awful task of making deep cuts to critical services—and in a hurry. Riley Kitts joins us to preview the massive tasks legislators face in the next few weeks to build a new budget that starts July 1. Advocates need to...

The humans who pull all the data and research together each year for our KIDS COUNT in Colorado! data book join us this week to remind us how these numbers represent actual Coloradans and their experiences. Pre-pandemic data collected in the 2020 edition released this week are an important check-up on our public systems and the state of child well-being as Colorado leaders respond to this health c...

Katrina Little, a labor and delivery nurse and advocate for birthing mothers, joins our own Jacy Montoya Price and Samantha Espinoza to explore shifting rules in labor and delivery during the coronavirus pandemic. New guidelines restricting the number of birthing supporters, like partners and doulas, allowed in a room could impact some pregnant people differently depending on their race. Dispropor...

Food security was already elusive for many Colorado kids and families. Then as the COVID-19 pandemic washed over our communities those tenuous connections to food sources were suddenly and dramatically broken. In the past few weeks, advocates, providers and governments mobilized quickly to pass emergency waivers, reconfigure systems and reach out to the growing number of unemployed and hungry fami...

Coloradans who fall ill during the early days of this pandemic are left in the dark without access to testing for COVID-19, including our own VP for Health Initiatives Erin Miller. As she tracked testing capacity and treatment for the disease caused by Coronavirus, her own family had to wonder about fevers, health, and quarantine without access to testing. The pandemic has illuminated the weakness...

 Coloradans share their experiences during the first few weeks of social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic—in their own voices. Legislators, child care providers, advocates, expecting parents and more sent us voice memos to share their thoughts, emotions and inspirations as we all struggle with a new normal that is uncertain and grounding at the same time. Support the show Follow the Children...

Invitations to complete the 2020 Census hit mailboxes at the same time the coronavirus was spreading across the nation. This crisis could significantly impact the counting of every Coloradan, and our state could be severely hurt by an undercount for years to come. Sarah Hughes joins us to share the good news that we can all complete our forms online from the safety of our social isolation. The Cen...

Child care and early childhood education systems are on the verge of collapsing in Colorado as families self-isolate and child care providers close. Alle providers run on tuition and attendance-based revenue from governments. With no payments and very thin margins, many providers report that they are in danger of closing permanently--at a time when essential workers like medical staff need them. A...

Weaknesses in our public health system driven by chronic underfunding are being exposed as the coronavirus spreads in our communities. Glen Mayes, professor of health systems, management and policy at the Colorado School of Public Health, joins us to examine the shocks being sent through our communities during this outbreak, what we can do now to support Coloradans, and what needs to be done to su...

A survey of Colorado students, parents and school administrators found that kids don’t have enough time to eat their lunch during the school day. Being rushed to eat to get back to learning means children aren’t eating enough to sustain them through the day, food is wasted, kids eat to quickly and risk forming unhealthy habits, and more. As a simple human need—eating—can have complex impacts on le...

Government Affairs Director Riley Kitts returns to debrief the status of the 2020 legislative session as we approach the halfway mark next week. Several great bills for kids have cleared first hurdles and are waiting for budget talks in a few weeks for funding. A few surprises have popped up this session that have caused very late night, and we are hearing of big issues coming up that advocates sh...

High school students from around the state rallied in Denver this week to tell legislators about their experiences with Colorado’s dysfunctional school finance system—and the impact it has had on their education. Advocates with the Colorado Youth Congress joined us to share how their experiences have been shaped by our uneven and inequitable school finance system. From mental health support to tea...

Sen. Rhonda Fields joins us to explore a simple and significant way to help Colorado families living in extreme poverty--below $12,000 a year in annual income for a family of four. Legislators are considering a bill that would increase temporary Basic Cash Assistance in response to the significant increased costs of housing and other needs in Colorado, and add an annual cost of living increase. Wi...

A doctor and a parent join us this week to tell us what's at stake when vaccination rates among children get too low. Kids with medical issues like cancer aren't able to be vaccinated and exposure to vaccine-preventable diseases could lead to death. With vaccine rates in Colorado schools dangerously low, we explore a proposal legislators will hear this session to boost those rates to pro...

New parents go to the doctor sometimes monthly—for rarely for themselves. In the critical and hectic early days with a newborn, new moms haul babies in for regular well-child checkups, but rarely access the mental health services they need to be the best parent they can be for their babies. Pediatricians can help mothers with straight-forward and simple questions about how they are doing, and in t...