Building Bright Futures (BBF) is Vermont’s early childhood public-private partnership charged under Title 33, Chapter 46, and the Federal Head Start Act (Public Law 110-134) as Vermont’s Early Childhood State Advisory Council (SAC) and network, the mechanism used to advise the Governor and Legislature on the well-being of children in the prenatal period through age 8 and their families.
We are also tasked with ensuring accountability and measuring the success of Vermont’s Early Childhood Action Plan and Vermont’s Act 76, a child care law passed in 2023. Read or watch video recordings of BBF’s testimony and legislative advisement below.
2025 Advisement to the Legislature and Administration
February 28, 2025
March 14, 2025: Overview of Building Bright Futures and Vermont’s Early Childhood System
January 23, 2025: Introduction to Building Bright Futures and Monitoring Act 76
February 13, 2025: Overview of Building Bright Futures and Vermont’s Early Childhood System
January 31, 2025: Overview of Building Bright Futures and Vermont’s Early Childhood System
2023-2024 Advisement to the Legislature and Administration
Sept. 26, 2023: Second Committee Meeting
- Vermont Universal Prekindergarten Education (UPK) Data, Publications, Reports, and Resources, Updated November 2024: Compilation of most recent data and information on UPK
- Data Needed to Inform Decision-making: This document outlined the questions/data that would be important to have to inform decision-making on the future of UPK, originally presented to the Senate Committee on Education.
- S.56 Stakeholder Feedback: This document captured stakeholder feedback on the policies and priorities originally proposed in S.56. Much of the feedback was related to UPK and a mixed delivery model and was presented in House Committee on Human Services, the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare, the Senate Committee on Education, and the House Committee on Education.
- Memo submitted to the Senate Committee on Education: This memo provided an overview of what information and data should be reviewed and discussed in order to improve UPK.
January 9, 2024: An overview of BBF’s role to monitor Act 76 to the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare
January 9, 2024: An overview of BBF’s role to monitor Act 76 to the House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development
February 27, 2024: Testimony on H.702 and Government Accountability to the House Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs
January 3, 2024: An overview of BBF’s role to monitor Act 76 to the House Committee on Human Services
2022-2023 Advisement to the Legislature and Administration
March 15, 2023: Testimony to Senate Committee on Education on considerations for S.56’s Universal Prekindergarten study
March 1, 2023:
- Memo submitted to the Senate Committee on Education
- Potential UPK Study Questions for Consideration
- Select UPK Data, Publications, Reports, and Resources
- Stakeholder comments on S.56 collected by Building Bright Futures as of Feb. 14, 2023 (Previously submitted to the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare)
March 16, 2023: Testimony to Senate Committee on Health and Welfare on BBF’s role within S.56 testimony
February 24, 2023: Follow-up to S.56 testimony to Senate Committee on Health and Welfare
February 17, 2023: Follow-up to S.56 testimony to Senate Committee on Health and Welfare
February 15, 2023: Testimony to Senate Committee on Health and Welfare on legislation related to child care and early childhood education (S.56)
January 19, 2023: An overview of BBF’s role to House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development
April 11, 2023: Testimony to House Committee on Education on legislation related to child care and early childhood education (H. 208) related to the Universal Prekindergarten program
February 1, 2023: Testimony to House Committee on General and Housing on housing’s impact on early childhood and family well-being
April 17, 2023: Written testimony to House Committee on Human Services on accountability within H.208/S.56 – An act relating to child care and early childhood education
April 6, 2023: Testimony to House Committee on Human Services on legislation related to child care and early childhood education (H. 208)
March 21, 2023: Overview of Vermont’s Preschool Development Grant’s goals and projects to House Committee on Human Services
April 14, 2023: Testimony to House Committee on Ways and Means on legislation related to child care and early childhood education (H.208)
H.217: Alignment with vision for Vermont’s early childhood system outlined in the Vermont Early Childhood Action Plan & recommendations endorsed by the Early Childhood State Advisory Council
2021-2022 Administration and General Advisement
- Memo: Early Childhood Components of the Build Back Better Act – 11/3/21
- Memo: American Families Plan Overview of Child Care Vision – 10/4/21
- Memo: Vermont Considerations for UPK Policy Under the American Families Plan – 10/4/21
- Memo: American Families Plan Overview of Universal Prekindergarten Education (UPK) – 9/20/21
2021-2022 Advisement to the Legislature and Administration
Feb. 18, 2022: Testimony to Senate Committee on Education on S.283: An act relating to miscellaneous changes to education laws (specific to suspension and expulsion in Universal Prekindergarten, UPK)
April 13, 2022: Testimony to Senate Committee on Health and Welfare on Vermont Child Care and Early Childhood Education Systems Analysis: Governance Approach Options. Joint hearing with House Committee on Human Services
Feb. 23, 2022: Testimony to House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development on H.703 – An act related to promoting workforce development
April 6, 2022: Testimony to House Committee on Education on Exclusionary Discipline in Early Childhood Settings – S.283
Oct. 27, 2021: Update on Universal Prekindergarten and Child Care – Potential Impacts from Congressional Bills
- Read testimony document: Overview of Child Care within the American Families Plan
- Read testimony document: Overview of Universal Prekindergarten within the American Families Plan
- Read testimony document: Vermont Considerations for Universal Prekindergarten
- Watch the video testimony on YouTube
April 13, 2022: Testimony to House Committee on Human Services on Vermont Child Care and Early Childhood Education Systems Analysis: Governance Approach Options. Joint hearing with Senate Committee on Health and Welfare
March 16, 2022: STARS Program
Aug. 12, 2021: Testimony to Task Force on the Implementation of the Pupil Weighting Factors Report
