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.
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