WASHINGTON, D.C., September 11, 2001—The conflicting missions, competing strategies, and fragmentation of child advocacy groups limit their ability to influence public and legislative agendas, according to a new Urban Institute Press book, released today by the Urban Institute.
Who Speaks for America's Children? The Role of Child Advocates in Public Policy, edited by Urban Institute researchers, Carol J. De Vita, and Rachel Mosher-Williams examines the promise and problems of child advocacy organizations and suggests ways to strengthen their effectiveness. Many of the book's insights can be applied to other types of nonprofit organizations.
In a series of compelling essays, leading experts on children's health policy, education policy, community organizing and the nonprofit sector shed important new light on how advocacy for children is conducted and the ways in which it influences policymaking on the federal, state and local levels. The authors use case studies and examples drawn from the nonprofit sector to illustrate various challenges and to explain how the role of child advocacy organizations is changing in the current policy climate.
The sheer number of organizations speaking out on children's issues today is staggering, according to De Vita, Mosher-Williams, and co-author Nicholas A. J. Stengel. They estimate that there is one nonprofit service provider and child advocacy organization for every 1,300 children in the United States. That amounts to more than 45,000 nonprofits providing children's services or promoting their interests.
"In spite of the large number of organizations serving children, there is no real consensus on what the key issues are or how to approach them. Child advocates cannot operate at the federal level alone; they must take their case to the states and localities. This requires crafting a clear message and building a stronger organizational infrastructure," says De Vita.
Who Speaks for America's Children? begins with an introduction by Emmett D. Carson, president and CEO of the Minneapolis Foundation, and then is divided into two sections. In the first section, De Vita, Mosher-Williams, and Stengel identify and examine the wide range of child advocacy organizations and potential barriers that deter groups from advocating. The essays that follow look at the relationship between funding levels, funding types and advocacy efforts; illustrate the wide divergence of values and strategies among child advocates through a case study of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP); and explore the broader role of child advocates within the democratic decision-making process.
Contributing authors to the book's first section include Sally Covington, California Works Foundation; Sara Rosenbaum and Colleen Sonosky, George Washington University; and Elizabeth Reid, the Urban Institute.
The book's second section looks at the evolution of child advocacy organizations, their past successes, current struggles, and future needs for affecting children's policies. One chapter traces the evolution of the child advocacy movement from its early reliance on volunteers to the current predominance of paid professional staff. Another essay draws helpful lessons from the successful efforts of early advocates to establish universal kindergarten programs. A third chapter offers interesting hypotheses on why there has not been a parent-led movement for children in the face of continuing child poverty.
Contributors to the second section include: Theda Skocpol, Harvard University; Jillian Dickert, Brandeis University; Barbara Beatty, Wellesley College; and Doug Imig, University of Memphis.
Each chapter illustrates the complexities and difficulties of promoting sound policies for children. In addition to a lack of consensus on issues and strategies, other barriers include the surprising difficulty of mobilizing parents, an under-representation of low-income children and families, and the continual tension between securing funds for universal programs versus targeted programs for children.
Says co-editor Rachel Mosher-Williams, "The real challenge for child advocacy organizations is to strengthen their capacity and make their voices more effective. This will require re-thinking strategies now in play, building strong coalitions with like-minded organizations, and using resources more effectively."
In a nation where more than 12 million children in 1999 lived in households with a family income below the federal poverty level, and approximately 1 million children who have been victims of substantiated or indicated abuse and neglect, the increased effectiveness of advocacy efforts is critical.
Leaders of local and national child-focused nonprofit organizations, foundation staff and board members, community activists and public policy scholars will find the book both enlightening and instructive. The study was supported by the Foundation for Child Development.
Who Speaks For America's Children? The Role of Child Advocates in Public Policy, edited by Carol J. De Vita and Rachel Mosher-Williams, with an introduction by Emmett D. Carson, is available from the Urban Institute Press (6"x 9", 236 pages, paperback, index, ISBN 0-87766-704-7, $26.50). To order, call (202) 261-5687 or toll-free 1-877-847-7377.
The Urban Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan policy research and education organization that examines the social, economic, and governance challenges facing the nation.
Latest Research
Browse by Topic:
Printer-friendly summary
