The Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) will hold its annual conference in Arlington, Virginia.

Caring for a sick child or bringing home a newborn baby can be daunting responsibilities. Worries about lost income can add to the stress. Rob Capriccioso reports on how paid family leave programs can help.

The First Years Institute is a catalyst to strengthen the community by building well-researched high quality support systems essential to enable children to be competently nurtured - physically, emotionally and cognitively - from gestation through the preschool years, and for families and caregivers to be valued and supported in accomplishing this task.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is dedicated to improving the well-being of all young children, with particular focus on the quality of educational and developmental services for all children from birth through age 8. NAEYC is committed to becoming an increasingly high performing and inclusive organization.

Founded in 1926, NAEYC is the world's largest organization working on behalf of young children with more than 100,000 members, a national network of nearly 450 local, state, and regional Affiliates, and a growing global alliance of like-minded organizations.

It seems obvious that any organization that serves kids will benefit from understanding parents' perspectives. But it's not always easy to include the parent voice. This article by Casey Flaherty from the May-June 2005 issue of Children's Advocate looks at three examples of bringing parents into the discussion.

At age 30, the Head Start program is on the defensive, facing criticism and efforts to change its basic structure. But Head Start also has its passionate defenders such as Jerrie deRose, who sent us this e-mail after seeing a profile of the Rosemount Head Start program in Washington DC on our Web site.

Mental health for toddlers isn't about putting two-year-olds on the couch. It's about healthy cognitive and emotional development for every child, development that provides the foundation for learning even before young children tackle their numbers and letters.

Event: Conference call to address the mental health needs of children in early education
Organized by: Pre-K Now
Where/When: Washington, D.C., March 15, 2005

This discussion included three key speakers: Peggy Nikkel, Executive Director of UPLIFT Wyoming, who addressed the general public as she relayed her personal experiences; Mary Beth Bruder, P.H.D of the University of Connecticut School of Medicine; who addressed educators, and Jane Knitzer, Ed.D., of the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) at Columbia University, who addressed policy makers and legislative change.http://www.uconnucedd.org/facbios.html

The Leelanau Children's Center is a provider of high quality, nurturing, developmentally appropriate early childhood education programs which advocate for children, parents and families in our community.

NRCA Head Start's mission is to maximize the strengths of families, their total health and well-being, and the social skills of children.