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Childhood is full of opportunity, and we know that children tend to do well when their families do well. Changing economic conditions in recent decades, however, have created barriers to financial progress for many families. For an increasing and alarming number of Wisconsin's working families, an "honest day's work" does not yield the security it once did. Too many of Wisconsin's families do not have access to secure jobs with sufficient pay or adequate supports such as affordable housing and health care. In 2005 more than 177,000 Wisconsin children lived in families led by people who worked but did not earn enough money to cover basic needs. That's a group of children larger than the populations of Appleton and Green Bay combined. A healthy future for Wisconsin's children requires making sure all families in the state can achieve the goal suggested by our state's motto -- "Forward" -- and have the opportunity to prosper. There are solutions to child poverty that will guarantee that nobody in Wisconsin is denied a healthy economic future. It is within our reach to ensure that all Wisconsin families have work that pays adequately, the ability to raise their children in safe and healthy communities, and access to quality health care and child care. Toward that end, the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families, the Wisconsin Head Start Association and the Wisconsin Community Action Program Association (WISCAP) have joined forces to launch the Vision 2020 Campaign to End Child Poverty in Wisconsin by the Year 2020. A first project of this campaign is the release, expected in February of 2007, of the Vision 2020 Report Card. This Report Card will provide an assessment of the current status of Wisconsin's children in four key areas directly linked to healthy futures: access to health care, affordable housing, early childhood learning, and family supporting wages. If we are to achieve the goal of economic prosperity for all of Wisconsin's families, we need to roll up our sleeves now and fix the holes in the systems that currently undermine stability and prosperity. In much the same way that school report cards measure how students are performing in school and indicate where improvement is needed, we grade Wisconsin on how well we are currently meeting the needs of the state's children, with an eye toward identifying areas where we can do better. The Vision 2020 Campaign aims to accomplish the following goals: 1. By the year 2020, every child in Wisconsin will live in a household with caregivers who are prepared for and have access to jobs that provide family-supporting wages. Though Wisconsin's economy is thriving overall, and statewide wages have increased recently, there are still large sections of the job market offering poverty wages and few benefits. Furthermore, there are significant disparities between whites and minorities and between women and men in our state. To reach the Vision 2020 goal and earn a grade of "A" in this area, we must ensure that workers earn family-supporting wages, focus workforce and economic development efforts where most needed, prepare adults for post-secondary education, and foster widespread participation in and completion of post-secondary education. 2. By the year 2020, Wisconsin must expand affordable housing options to end family homelessness and enable parents to raise their children in healthy and nurturing environments. Quality, safe, affordable housing anchors families in their communities, contributes to children's school success, and provides the permanency necessary for parents to maintain stable employment or engage in job training activities. Wisconsin's cost of housing has far outpaced the growth in incomes, resulting in a rising housing cost burden for too many Wisconsinites. To reach the Vision 2020 goal and earn an "A" grade in this area, we must create a statewide housing trust fund; eliminate lead hazards; increase local flexibility to address housing crises; prevent homelessness; and ensure the continued exemption of low-income housing from property taxes. 3. By the year 2020, all Wisconsin children should have health insurance and access to appropriate, timely and consistent preventive care, dental and mental health services. Wisconsin has always been a national leader in providing health care solutions for our children and families. While we enjoy a relatively high rate of health insurance coverage, there are still a sizeable number of children who lack coverage, and many more who face a lack of local primary care providers, as well as transportation, cultural and language barriers to quality health services. To reach the Vision 2020 goal and an "A" grade in this area, we must ensure that all children have access to health insurance; expand access to dental and mental health services; eliminate race and income disparities in health care; improve health outcomes and services for infants; ensure the nutritional health of all kids; and eliminate bureaucratic barriers to health care coverage. 4. By the year 2020, Wisconsin will build a universally accessible system of quality early childhood education and care and after-school programs that supports optimal child development. Quality early learning experiences contribute significantly to lifelong success and benefit the wider community by yielding higher educational attainment, reducing the achievement gap, and lowering special education costs. Wisconsin has been a national leader in early care and education. However, children's access to high quality education from birth through graduation is too heavily influenced by the relative wealth of their communities. To reach the Vision 2020 goal and earn an "A" grade in this area, we must expand affordable access to and increase the quality of early care and after school programs, and improve the educational achievement of children from economically disadvantaged families. Look for the release of the Report Card, with grades on how Wisconsin is doing right now in each of these areas, in early February. Contact Vicky Selkowe at vselkowe@wccf.org or (608) 284-0580, ext. 326 for more information about the Vision 2020 Campaign and how to get involved. | ||||
