Advocacy

At Children’s Friend, we serve 925 families in our First Connections, Healthy Families America and Nurse Family Partnership home visiting programs. The state has changed the funding model, so these programs are primarily paid for by fee-for-service Medicaid, making it extremely difficult for us to cover the costs of these lifesaving programs. Rhode Island must be creative – as other states have been – in funding home visiting programs to ensure their ongoing sustainability.

(H7794 Giraldo / S2845 Valverde) Fund Family Home Visiting Rates and MIECHV match
(H7127 Abney) FY27 DOH Department Budget – MIECHV State Match & Pedi PRN

Children’s Friend provides an array of early education and early child care options for families including Early Head Start, Head Start, Child Care, and Pre-K. We have served over 1,469 children so far in 2024 at one of our 13 licensed early childhood centers. We have a waitlist for these programs, primarily due to our inability to hire enough staff. We urge the state to invest in child care reimbursement rates and strategies to invest in our early education workforce.

(H7680 Donovan / S3077 Gallo) Include Head Start model in Early Childhood Categorical Fund
(H8163 McNamara / S3147 Gallo) Pre-K Implementation and Expansion Guidelines
(H7317 Donovan / S2369 Urso) Early Educator Workforce Act
(H7393 Diaz / S2667 Vargas) Child Care is Essential – Expand Eligibility and Increase Rates
(H7319 Diaz / S2085 DiMario) Expand Child Care for Child Care Educators
(S2721 DiMario) Relating to Insurance – Child Serving Provider Liability

(H7627 Tanzi / S2834 Valverde) Early Intervention Extension Bill (Bridge to Preschool)
(H7586 Cotter / S2785 Valverde) Fund Early Intervention Rates + Data Dashboard

Children’s Friend supports increasing cash assistance benefits annually and aligning them with the federal poverty limit, ensuring no child lives in deep poverty. Additionally, measures should be taken to protect vulnerable children from losing their benefits if their parent loses eligibility due to immigration status.

(H7689 Handy / S2828 Murray) Improve the RI Works Program
(H7230 Diaz) RI Works Program

At Children’s Friend, we serve 925 families in our First Connections, Healthy Families America and Nurse Family Partnership home visiting programs. The state has changed the funding model, so these programs are primarily paid for by fee-for-service Medicaid, making it extremely difficult for us to cover the costs of these lifesaving programs. Rhode Island must be creative – as other states have been – in funding home visiting programs to ensure their ongoing sustainability.

Tina Laprade,Vice President of Programs
at Children’s Friend testified at the Senate Finance Committee on 04.14.26 regarding the Department of Health’s FY27 budget and the important need to adequately fund the state’s home visiting programs.

David Caprio,President and Chief Executive Officer
at Children’s Friend testified at the Senate Committee on Finance on 05.05.26 in support of Senator Valerde’s bill to Sustain Home Visiting.

Children’s Friend provides an array of early education and early child care options for families including Early Head Start, Head Start, Child Care, and Pre-K. We have served over 1,469 children so far in 2024 at one of our 13 licensed early childhood centers. We have a waitlist for these programs, primarily due to our inability to hire enough staff. We urge the state to invest in child care reimbursement rates and strategies to invest in our early education workforce.

David Caprio, President and Chief Executive Officer
at Children’s Friend testified at the House Committee on Finance on 04.28.26.

Alicia Moran, of Children’s Friend testified at the House Committee on Finance on 05.14.26.

Jenah Morrell of Children’s Friend testified at the Senate Finance Committee on 05.06.26.

Early Head Start

Head Start

Rhode Island PBS Weekly: Falling Behind

First Connections

Children’s Friend: Needed Now More Than Ever

Marc’s Story

The Dads Job Training Program at Children’s Friend
Many, many thanks to Capitol Conduit, who donated this amazing video.

Children’s Friend provides an array of early education and early child care options for families including Early Head Start, Head Start, Child Care, and Pre-K. We have served over 1,469 children so far in 2024 at one of our 13 licensed early childhood centers. We have a waitlist for these programs, primarily due to our inability to hire enough staff. We urge the state to invest in child care reimbursement rates and strategies to invest in our early education workforce.

(H5196 Diaz / S100 DiMario) Continue the Child Care for Child Care Educators program
(H5200 Donovan / S673 Urso) Pass the Early Educator Workforce Act
(H5197 Diaz / S62 DiMario) Streamline Access to the Child Care Assistance Program
(H5281 Diaz/ S240 Vargas) Child Care is Essential
(H5199 McNamara / S394 S Gallo) Establish Pre-K implementation and expansion guidelines, including a infant/toddler set-aside

At Children’s Friend, we serve 925 families in our First Connections, Healthy Families America and Nurse Family Partnership home visiting programs. The state has changed the funding model, so these programs are primarily paid for by fee-for-service Medicaid, making it extremely difficult for us to cover the costs of these lifesaving programs. Rhode Island must be creative – as other states have been – in funding home visiting programs to ensure their ongoing sustainability.

(H5164 Carson / S231 Valverde) Support the establishment of an IDEA Task Force bill
(H6073 Giraldo / S677 Valverde) Invest state funding to draw down federal funds for home visiting and re-visit Medicaid strategy to support proven, multi-year, consistent, relationship-based programs

Children’s Friend supports the creation of an IDEA Task Force (H5164) to develop a financing and staffing plan for a coherent system of educational and developmental services for babies and young children with developmental delays and disabilities.
(S247 Valverde) Maternal and child health service for children with special healthcare needs – Early Intervention program for developmentally disabled infants.
(H5462 Tanzi) Maternal and child health services for children with special healthcare needs – Early intervention program for developmentally disabled infants.

Children’s Friend supports increasing cash assistance benefits annually and aligning them with the federal poverty limit, ensuring no child lives in deep poverty. Additionally, measures should be taken to protect vulnerable children from losing their benefits if their parent loses eligibility due to immigration status.