Childcare & Early Education

November 10, 2009

As a mother, I have felt the burden and struggle of raising a family, pursuing a career and making ends meet for a very long time. I am not alone. As a nation we must step down off our “family values” soapbox; listen to mothers; and get real about creating and enforcing sustainable and effective policies that support the importance of the family unit. Then and only then will true enlightenment be attained.

Pamela Murphy

Paid Family Leave Childcare & Early Education Open Flexible Work

October 30, 2009

I’ve been on a one-woman campaign to resurrect the phrase, paycheck job , used by Betty Friedan in The Feminine Mystique forty years ago. Friedan was referring, of course, to jobs outside the home for which people receive money. She recognized that the unpaid job of caring for children and home was...

Nanette Fondas

Paid Family Leave Childcare & Early Education

October 30, 2009

Why is it so hard to tell our bosses we have to leave for family reasons? What if all the dads where we worked did it more often? Leaders like Valerie Jarrett show that being committed to your kids and your job are not mutually exclusive -- and employers win when they recognize that. Maria Shriver's report A Women's Nation offers fresh ideas for opening up more common-sense conversation - like adopting UK "right to request" rules that allow parents to get some control over their hours and still produce great results for their employers.

Sharon Meers

Paid Family Leave Childcare & Early Education

October 30, 2009

I was at the Working Mother Work Life Congress this week, which showcases the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers and also provides workshops and discussions for people who work in the field unfortunately called “work life.” Companies were asking: What should we do to retain new moms, and to...

Morra Aarons-Mele

Childcare & Early Education

October 23, 2009

Earlier this week, Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid was photographed wearing his MomsRising pacifier pin—evidence of exactly how powerful moms can be. When enough women come together and make their collective voices heard, politicians will listen. With so much at stake for women, families and...

Ashlee Tran

Childcare & Early Education

October 15, 2009

Well, here we go again. Virginia seems to be stuck rehashing the culture wars of the 1980's in their Governor's race, but with a new twist. Instead of one side demonizing working women, both sides are loving us up (although one could argue at times it's still a bit patronizing). Seems that...

Ariana Kelly

Paid Family Leave Childcare & Early Education Paid Sick Days Realistic & Fair Wages Family Economic Security

September 28, 2009

On NPR this week, I was asked if there’s any good in the new statistics showing that women now outnumber men in the work force. Maybe. If it lets us embrace women as breadwinners, I said, that would be healthy. Even healthier: If men do their part at home and free women to keep the kinds of jobs...

Sharon Meers

Childcare & Early Education

September 16, 2009

“Are you a stay-at-home mom?” It’s a common question when I’m at the local playground with my two kids, yet I’m finding my answer to be more uncommon than I ever expected.

Andrea Venezia

Childcare & Early Education

September 15, 2009

In a moment of maternal defeat, I decided that my son's future wife will just have to deal with his attachment to pacifiers. Yes, we all have our early challenges. And some, like affordable quality preschool and childcare, are bigger than others. So, it's music to my ears that Congress just introduced the new Early Learning Challenge Fund to Address some key early learning challenges.

Sarah Francis

Childcare & Early Education

September 15, 2009

As an advocate, I want to see the millions of vulnerable children realize their potential. As a mom, I want my son and daughter to grow up with other kids who share their love of learning. By raising the quality of our nation’s early childhood education programs and increasing access to them, we can fundamentally change not only our children’s future, but our nation’s as well.

Catherine Atkin