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South Dakota Early Learners


Make your voice heard
for South Dakota children


Vision:
That all children have access to high-quality early learning experiences and environments to create a solid foundation for lifelong success.

Background Basics

South Dakota Early Learner Data Dashboard  The Early Learner South Dakota Data Dashboard provides information on early learners, their families, and their learning environments in South Dakota. This data is updated annually.

The return on investment ranges from $5 - $16 for each dollar spent. Savings result from lower remedial/special education costs, improved graduation rates and job opportunities, reduced incarceration rates, and more healthy life choices.

  Nationwide, regardless of party, voters overwhelmingly (55%) say high-quality, affordable child care for families with young children is an essential service—just like healthcare and education.

80% of mothers in SD are working outside of the home. Available child care is a must to keep these mothers and fathers in the SD workforce and continue to add to positive economic development growth.

About 17% of children in SD are food insecure (at risk of not having enough to eat). High-quality early learning environments can ensure up to 3 meals a day, 5 days a week. Early learning settings can help families get connected to other resources to help increase family stability.

31,425 children (15%) under age 18 live in poverty in South Dakota. Among American Indian children, 60% live in poverty. Families living in poverty or in low-income households experience many obstacles and face challenges raising a family.

 Families must have resources to meet their basic needs for food, health care, jobs that pay a living wage, safe affordable housing, home visiting and parenting education services, and much more.

Child Care & Economic Recovery

South Dakota’s economic recovery depends on the availability of child care for working parents.  This makes child care the pathway back to work. Read this one pager for details.

Child care is a two-generational support for working families. Child care helps parents earn and children learn. Download this Infographic to learn more.

Child care small businesses have an annual economic impact of $279 million statewide. Download this infographic to learn more.

Policy Tools

Early Learner SD Policy Priorities

Vision:

That all children have access to high-quality early learning experiences and environments to create a solid foundation for lifelong success.

  • ​Equitable access to high-quality, affordable, child care (to enable parents to earn and children to learn)
  • School readiness for all South Dakota children
  • Support parents as a child’s first teacher
  • Improve child and family well-being (access to health care and home-visiting programs that support parents, infants, and young children to grow and thrive)
  • Strategies to build a network of high-quality early childhood educators in center-based and home-based child care programs that increase communication and access to resources for providers in SD
  • Pathways to increase training and certification offerings for early learning professionals at an affordable rate

What's at stake for SD children? What all SD state legislators need to know. Download this one pager to learn more. 

 

Advocacy Basics

 

South Dakota State Legislative Web Site

 

2022 SD State Legislator Listing  (All Legislators)

 

2022 SD State Legislators (Pictures, Profiles, Phone, and Emails)

 

  • 2022 House Health & Human Services Committee   
  • 2022 Senate Health & Human Services Committee
  • 2022 House Appropriations Committee
  • 2022 Senate Appropriations Committee
  • 2022 Joint Appropriations Committee

Find my SD State Legislators (Just put in your address)

 

Advocacy Tools

There are many ways you can connect with state legislators to learn more about their positions on the issues that matter most to you. These individuals are elected to public office, which means to effectively represent people, they need to hear from people!

Sample Meeting Request Letter for State Legislators (It's easy, just email your legislator a letter and ask for either an in-person or virtual meeting)

Sample Talking Points  (It's always best to use your own words. These are just some starter thoughts)

Connecting with State Officials Key Questions (State legislators are elected to represent people in their communities. It's fair to ask - what will you do to support families with young children)?  

Sample Letter to the Editor (LTE) (Food for thought to raise visibility in many different media outlets - newspapers, social media, blogs, etc.)

Sample Email to Candidates for Public Office (The next election is just around the corner, be ready!)

Early Learner South Dakota Data Dashboard (Quick SD data at your fingertips!)

Become an Early Learner South Dakota community!

 

preschool kids small

SD Economic Recovery Depends on Child Care!

Economic recovery depends on child care! Email your state legislators today to create a list of home-based programs so that providers have information and support such as PPE to keep themselves and the children in their care safe!

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