Health Equity Strategic Plan | Department of Early Childhood
Visit the Department of Early Childhood website, call 800-799-5876, or email cdec_communications@state.co.us for more information or assistance with direct services.
Priority:
Education Access and Quality,
Health Care Access and Quality,
& Social and Community Context
Problem statement
Access to and participation in early childhood programming by historically marginalized communities is often lower than other communities due to culturally-unresponsive outreach and programming, as well as limited funding opportunities. This is a problem because we know that access to early childhood health, education and wellness programming is so critical and beneficial to improving childhood development outcomes in areas of school readiness, academic achievement, and physical/social/behavioral outcomes. Our equity strategic plan addresses this issue by implementing culturally responsive program communications, public awareness campaigns, local networking opportunities, and language justice guides.
Community engagement
The Department’s community engagement plan involves three initiatives: building communities of practice, targeted community engagement, and strategic language justice planning.
- Building Communities of Practice: CDEC will build “communities of practice” that support programs and organizations in incorporating equity within their own systems. These communities of practice will be built through newsletters, trainings, statewide forums, and more.
- Targeted Community Engagement: Recognizing the unique federal status of American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) communities and wanting to build and maintain strong relationships for years to come, the CDEC is committed to partnering with AIAN communities all across Colorado through a number of initiatives to elevate tribal voice, eliminate barriers, build networks and pathways for access, and strengthen the workforce in tribal communities throughout the state. One of the newest ways to engage the AIAN communities with the CDEC is through the CDEC’s Tribal Advisory Council. This is an opportunity for Tribal Representatives (on and off reservation) to directly participate in CDEC as an advisory work group. This group will have the ability to participate in funding applications and opportunities, give input on strategic plans or ideas around systematic needs, and to be the voice for the AIAN community and their experience.
- Strategic Language Justice Planning: With over 123 languages spoken throughout the state, creating equity in the Colorado Early Childhood Education community requires the development of a Language Justice Plan for the Department of Early Childhood. This plan will include information about how to support interpretation, translation, speaking from the heart, multi-lingual programming, and supporting a linguistically diverse workforce. It will also identify resources in the community that support language justice work to help community programs build a network for language access.
Statewide Early Childhood Equity Forum
The Statewide Early Childhood Equity Forum will convene shareholders from historically marginalized communities and with diverse perspectives, lived experiences, and identities. The forum will enable CDEC to better understand the barriers to early childhood services access within their community and develop actionable plans to address these barriers.
The forum will strengthen and develop new community partnerships and set the foundation to engage local communities in a collective impact model. It will create a space of learning, shared understanding, dialogue, and collective action that leads to state systems strategies for equitable engagement and access. Specific issues will include language justice, cultural responsiveness, economic barriers, and equitable access to programs and services.
Communities prioritized by this strategy:
- Low-income communities
- Communities of color
- LGBT+ communities
- People living with disabilities
- Housing cost-burdened communities
- Linguistically isolated communities
- Historically marginalized communities
- Cumulatively impacted communities
- Rural communities
- Tribal lands
- Mobile Home Communities
- Migrant and Refugee communities
Areas of impact
This strategy will impact Coloradans statewide.
2024 milestones
- Plan and prepare a statewide convening. [Complete]
- Launch a needs assessment strategy comprising data reviews, interviews, and surveys to fully understand the scope of EDIA needs across the various communities in order to plan a meaningful Equity Forum based on collected data. [Complete]
2025 milestones
- Host a Statewide Early Childhood Equity Forum.
- Collect and analyze feedback and complete the following: follow-up communication, reporting and documentation, action planning, community updates, relationship building, and celebrate success.
2026 milestones
- Host 2nd Annual Statewide Early Childhood Equity Forum.
- Consider feedback and make changes based on community input.
By December 2024
- Complete planning for the Inaugural CDEC Equity Forum. [Complete]
- Complete an equity needs assessment strategy comprising data reviews, interviews, and surveys to fully understand the scope of EDIA needs across the various communities to plan a meaningful Equity Forum based on collected data. [Complete]
By December 2025
- Host Inaugural Equity Forum, complete post Equity Forum analysis and create a plan for the 2nd Annual CDEC Equity Forum.
By December 2026
- Host the 2nd Annual Equity Forum, increase participant attendance by 50%, complete post Equity Forum analysis and create a plan for the 3rd Annual CDEC Equity Forum.
Long-term measures
- The Equity Forum will build a statewide network of Early Childhood Professionals who will work together to increase Culturally Responsive Health and Early Childhood initiatives and activities.
Tribal Advisory Council
The Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) is a bi-monthly meeting of American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) community representatives who gather to give input and feedback on policies to the CDEC from a tribal perspective and experience. This is an opportunity to connect historically marginalized communities to systems by innovating the process of engagement and value. The TAC’s scope of work includes providing feedback to department happenings and programs, connecting with the AIAN community to learn of strengths, barriers and needs, input on funding applications and reports, and community based projects. This strategy increases awareness in the AIAN community about the resources and programs at the CDEC; and informs the department about how to ensure the services and programs provided meet the needs of this specific community. By doing these two things we hope to increase AIAN use of programs and other early childhood resources. This is a targeted approach to building relationships with action and access.
Communities prioritized by this strategy:
- Low-income communities
- Communities of color
- LGBT+ communities
- People living with disabilities
- Housing cost-burdened communities
- Linguistically isolated communities
- Historically marginalized communities
- Cumulatively impacted communities
- Rural communities
- Tribal lands
- Mobile Home Communities
Areas of impact
This strategy will impact Coloradans statewide.
2024 milestones
- Recruit Tribal Advisory Council Representatives. [Complete]
2025 milestones
- Fund Year 2: Completion of TAC meetings and AIAN Community Activities that promote healthy early childhood practices and connect communities to resources.
2026 milestones
- Fund Year 3: Completion of TAC meetings and AIAN Community Activities that promote healthy early childhood practices and connect communities to resources.
By December 2024, 2025, and 2026
- Ensure active participation in 6 TAC meetings.
- Ensure TAC participation in 2 or more community events.
- Ensure TAC input in 2 or more CDEC projects.
- Complete Community Activities/Projects that promote AIAN child birthing and child raising practices, provide connections points within the community for early childhood health and education resources, and build support relationships within the AIAN village for each other.
By December 2025 and 2026
- Increase the number of people signed up for the CDEC Tribal Newsletter by 25%.
Long-term measures
- Establish a reciprocal relationship with CDEC and the Colorado AIAN community to enhance early childhood awareness, programs, and resources provided to AIAN children and families across the state.
Strategic Language Justice Plan
The Strategic Language Justice Plan will increase equitable access to early childhood resources by expanding language options that meet the needs of Coloradans. The plan will identify and direct solutions informed by analysis of language barriers and information gaps across the state. Through this access plan, the creation of templates and guides for our departmental staff and programs will promote meaningful communication with non-English speakers enhancing access through a range of in-house support and services as well as connections to language-focused organizations in the community. These services include: vital documentation, translation services, interpretation services, notices, flyers, websites, applications, and more. The plan will outline a structure of when, how and who to connect to in order to provide the best possible services (in-person or in print) in our early childhood community.
Communities prioritized by this strategy:
- Communities of color
- Linguistically isolated communities
- Historically marginalized communities
Areas of impact
This strategy will impact Coloradans statewide.
2024 milestones
- Launch a needs assessment strategy comprising data reviews, interviews, and surveys to fully understand the scope of language needs across the department’s services and operations. [Complete]
- Introduce a Department-wide language access plan. [Complete]
- Propose, implement, and participate in innovative solution-oriented discussions concerning language justice. [Complete]
- Engage with community partners to understand language access needs, gaps, and strengths. [Complete]
2025 milestones
- Implement lessons learned from needs assessment strategy consisting of data reviews, interviews, and surveys.
- Launch, create awareness and revise (as needed) a Department-wide language access plan.
- Utilize an internal workgroup of multilingual staff to inform a 5-year language justice strategic action plan.
- Gather feedback internally and externally on a draft 5- year language justice strategic action plan.
- Continue to propose, implement, and participate in innovative solution-oriented discussions concerning language justice.
- Continue to engage with community partners to understand language access needs, gaps, and strengths while implementing and planning for their feedback and suggestions.
2026 milestones
- Finalize 5-year language justice strategic action plan utilizing internal and external feedback.
- Continue to engage with community partners to understand language access needs, gaps, and strengths while implementing and planning for their feedback and suggestions.
- Formalize an ECE external language justice advisory working group.
- Strengthen internal language access best practices with an internal workgroup of multilingual staff.
By December 2024
- Track Language Justice Consultation Requests. [Complete]
- Host 3 Language Justice Internal Working Groups of multilingual staff. [Complete]
- Develop a draft language access plan. [Complete]
By December 2025
- Draft 5 year Language Justice Strategic Action Plan.
- Host 8 Language Justice Internal Working Groups.
- Host 3 community engagement efforts to inform language justice 5-year strategic plan.
By December 2026
- Update Language Access Plan.
- Finalize and start to implement 5 year Language Justice Strategic Action Plan.
By December 2024, 2025, and 2026
- Track and make meaning of the patterns and variety of language justice consultation requests internally and externally.
Long-term measures
- Build reciprocal relationships between CDEC and non-English speaking communities to improve and strengthen awareness and equitable access to early childhood programs, resources and leadership opportunities.