Voices of Tomorrow (VOT) is excited to announce our now fully functioning Policy and Advocacy Department (PAD). Although VOT has been involved in policy and advocacy since its founding, we are now making intentional investments to engage with our governing systems. With a team of three dedicated staff, we are committed to addressing institutional inequities and empowering the communities we serve to use their voice in public spaces. We are excited to see the impact of our investments and look forward to collaborating with others to create positive change.

​The vision for VOT is to elevate our presence as a trusted community partner in the realm of Public Policy throughout the state of Washington. We seek to be fully integrated into decision-making processes at every stage of policy development, rather than being informed about decisions after the fact. To achieve this goal, Our Policy and Advocacy Department is dedicated to understanding the shape of public policy initiatives at the Federal, State, and local levels affecting our work, and the communities we serve. Our purpose is to identify key issues, create alliances, and build support with both the East African Immigrant and Refugee Community, as well as other community partners for critical policy objectives that align with VOT’s mission and vision.

So, What Has the Policy and Advocacy Team Been Up To?
Listening and Learning! The 2023 Washington State Legislature is currently in session. This means your state senators and representatives are drafting new bills, listening to public testimony at hearings, taking meetings with their constituents, and voting on legislation. Actions and decisions made during this time often result in meaningful impacts for residents, therefore VOT hopes to ensure we remain informed on key issues.

In January and early February, our team traveled to the state Capitol to learn and support our allies in this work, including the Washington State Association for HeadStart and ECEAP, and Child Care Resources. We are tracking many of the bills being debated right now that include topics affecting children, childcare providers, and families; and learned a lot about the political process and laws currently being proposed.

Legislation of Interest:
Many bill proposals are being floated through our State Capitol right now. While these may or may not pass, these are the types of proposals Voices of Tomorrow hopes to influence in the future, alongside members of the East African Immigrant and Refugee Community and fellow early learning professionals. Some of the unique bills that we are currently monitoring are:

• House Bill (HB) 1199 – This bill seeks to ensure that providers can run childcare businesses in their homes without landlords or homeowners’ associations restricting their ability to do so.
• HB 1511 – This bill intends to expand eligibility for ECEAP and childcare subsidies, like Working Connections Child Care. By removing certain income requirements, the goal is to ensure more families qualify for affordable childcare options.

What does the Policy & Advocacy Department mean for you?
Voices of Tomorrow recognizes that we cannot do this work alone! For the remainder of the year, we will be actively engaging with members of our community to learn about the most pressing issues affecting them and provide training opportunities for solution-based action. We believe in the power of organizing and collective action, and we hope you’ll join us as we launch our upcoming Advocacy 101 series and Civic Boot Camp seminars. Through these initiatives, we will cover important topics such as Understanding the Political Process, How to Become an Advocate, Voting, and Knowing Your Rights!

We encourage you to keep an eye out for upcoming newsletters, invitations to listening sessions, trainings, and more events that enable you to get involved and make a difference. Together we can make our voices heard and create a positive change in our communities!

Meet our Policy and Advocacy Department | PDF