You’re Invited! GEEARS’ 10th Anniversary Virtual Celebration

GEEARS has been making an impact on early childhood policy in Georgia for over a decade. And, while we cannot gather in person, we still hope to see you on screens as we celebrate our past successes, unveil our new strategic plan, and recognize our partners and leaders.

In addition, our program will include a panel discussion, “Innovative Strategies for the Post-Pandemic Workforce.” Families across the nation are returning to work. But is it that simple? Are children getting the early care they need while parents try and make ends meet? What innovative strategies can the public and private sectors adopt to ensure that working parents thrive as employees, caregivers, and community members in a post-pandemic world? What policies can we adopt to ensure that employees reenter the workforce quickly and smoothly? We’ll answer these questions and more.

PAACT: Promise All Atlanta Children Thrive Launches Citywide Public Awareness Campaign

PAACT’s first citywide advocacy and awareness campaign has officially launched. Billboards, interior bus ads, and online ads will increase public awareness about the importance of early learning and the fact that access to high-quality care and education is not a reality for all families and caregivers in the City of Atlanta. The ads feature young toddlers with the message, “If Atlanta doesn’t invest in their education now, we’ll pay for it later.

The PAACT collaborative is focused on the following priorities:

• Increasing access to high-quality early learning environments
• Increasing public awareness and engagement
• Aligning systems
• Building greater capacity to serve the health and well-being needs of children and families

Action Alert: Once-in-a-Generation Opportunity to Address America's Child Care Crisis

The American Rescue Plan Act and other relief measures from the past year provided crucial emergency funding to support an already-unstable child care industry and ensure essential workers could access care through the pandemic; however, as intended, relief funding is ensuring the current child care system simply survives. While survival of the industry is paramount, federal relief dollars will not address long-standing challenges in a system that is struggling to meet the needs of parents, providers, and businesses.

Now is the time for Congress to address America’s child care crisis with a significant investment in our early education system to ensure every family who needs it can access the care options that work for them.

Click below to contact your U.S. Senators and Representative and ask them to make significant, sustained investments in our nation’s child care and early learning system. If you have time, edit the message to make it your own!

EVENT RECAP: A Conversation about the COVID-19 Vaccine - Just for the Child Care Workforce 

In collaboration with the Georgia CEAL team of  Morehouse School of Medicine, GEEARS hosted a conversation with early childhood educators to explore their questions about the COVID-19 vaccine. A panel of doctors, scientists, and early childhood professionals shared their experiences and answered questions. 

You can view the full recording and resources discussed during the event on the GEEARS website. 

Host A Virtual Film Screening for Your Parent Group or Organization

GEEARS is excited to partner with community leaders from across Georgia to help facilitate engaging events about young children and their families. To do this, we're offering technical assistance to communities to put on meaningful, accessible events. GEEARS will help secure a film to virtually screen, host the online platform, and plan and advertise the event.

In the past, communities used films to help spread awareness and serve as a conversation starter for guest speakers from the community. Conversations included elected officials discussing policy opportunities, expert educators sharing tips with parents.

If you would like to explore hosting a virtual screening and discussion in your community, fill out the form below and get connected! We'd love to talk with you about it. This is a first-come, first-served opportunity, and we will take on as many events as possible! 

Complete the interest form if any of the following film topics are relevant to your audience! Or email gbarrett@geears.org with questions.

Film Options: 

• Starting at Zero – (1h 3m) Focused on early childhood policy, and includes state agency leaders from Georgia
• Zero Weeks – (1h 27m) A close look at paid family leave, including families with young children
• No Small Matter – (1h 14m) An entertaining introduction to core early childhood topics
• Through the Night – (1h 15m) A portrait of the herculean effort both caregivers and families give to raising young children today

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