Get Involved
Action Center
Our coalition is made up of advocates of all kinds: early childhood providers, policy professionals, legislators, parents and community members, and we know that advocacy is nothing without action. Here in our Action Center, you'll find a variety of different actions that you can take in support of Illinois' infants, toddlers and expecting families. If you have an action you'd like to see here, send the information to communications@raisingillinois.org. Actions will be updated regularly, so check this space often and make sure you're following us on Twitter @RaisingIllinois for the latest updates!
Relational Pathways to Healing in Perinatal and Maternal Mental Health
ILAIMH
Developing a therapeutic relationship is at the core of supporting maternal mental health – join us as our presenters share their trauma-informed, evidence-based work and experiences.
Timeline: May 15 | 12 p.m.
Nurturing Early Relationships: How Doulas Support Maternal and Infant Mental Health
ILAIMH
Doula support has powerful benefits for maternal mental health. Join our panelists to explore how doula care serves as a vital emotional protective factor for early relationships.
Timeline: May 6 | 12 p.m
Ask Your Legislators to Invest in Early Intervention Services in the Final Fiscal Year 2027 State Budget
Start Early
Despite a challenging budget year, with federal uncertainty complicating Illinois state funding, we are grateful to Governor JB Pritzker for outlining in his budget proposal a $15 million increase in state funding for the Early Intervention (EI) program. While we welcome the Governor’s proposed increase, additional state funding is needed to address the service delays impacting children and families. Contact your state legislators to ask for a $40 million total increase in funding in FY27 for the Early Intervention program, which would allow the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) to address immediate program needs and respond to historically high service delays that are directly tied to the workforce shortage.
Timeline: Now - May 31
Take Action on Behalf of Illinois' Children, Families and Early Childhood Workforce
Start Early
This February, Governor JB Pritzker issued his Fiscal Year 2027 (FY 2027) budget proposal, which includes meaningful investments in Illinois’ Early Intervention program and the Child Care Assistance Program while maintaining level funding for other early childhood programs.
Join Start Early in calling on our state legislature to prioritize our youngest learners today and during this new legislative session. Our babies can’t wait.
Timeline: Now - May 31
Beyond HB1312: Navigating Immigration Enforcement for Child Care Providers in IL
Latino Policy Forum
We invite you to join the upcoming webinar, presented in partnership with We, the Village, Latino Policy Forum, Illinois Action for Children, and Start Early.
This webinar series is designed to help all early childhood providers working understand and implement best practices for navigating immigration enforcement activity in their communities.
Timeline: March 19th from 6:30-7:30 PM CST
Join the IFEI Coalition!
Illinois Families for Early Intervention
We are currently seeking Volunteers, Chairs, Co-Chairs, Executive Coordinators, and an Advocacy Director who are passionate about supporting families of infants and toddlers with disabilities or developmental delays—and who want to be part of meaningful, ethical, and family-centered change. Whether your strength is advocacy, outreach, organization, communication, or leadership, your voice and time can help us not only meet our mission—but surpass it.
Once you fill out the volunteer interest form you will receive an email prior to the meeting with the meeting login details! No matter your background, ALL are welcome!
Timeline: Our first IFEI Coalition Meeting will be on Tuesday, March 3rd 2026 at 7:30pm. We will conduct meetings thereafter on the First Tuesday of each Month at 7:30pm.
Raise Your Voice! How Will The HHS Funding Freeze Impact You?
Raising Illinois
Raising Illinois is collecting stories from providers on how the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Funding Freeze will impact you, your family and your community.
Timeline: Ongoing
Make Your Voice Heard on Early Childhood Education and Care!
University of Illinois, Northwestern University and Western Illinois University
Calling all parents and caregivers!! Please complete a survey on your views of early childhood education in the state of Illinois. This survey is part of a research-practice partnership to understand how Multilingual children and families are currently being served in birth to five settings across our state and to develop training, support, and messaging that can help create equitable and accessible early learning experiences for multilingual learners and their families.
Timeline: Ongoing
Illinois Nontraditional-Hour Child Care Study (INCCS)
Erikson Institute
Over one in three young children in the U.S. are in child care during nontraditional hours (NTH; including early mornings, evenings, nights, and weekends). This project addresses critical gaps in knowledge about what quality looks like in child care; the experiences of families who search for and use NTH child care; the lived experiences of providers who offer care during these hours; and the types of supports needed to maintain, sustain, and grow the supply of NTH care. The knowledge gathered will provide IDHS and other states with new knowledge to inform policy development aimed at building supply and increasing equitable access, enhancing quality, and sustaining a thriving NTH child care workforce.
We invite you to read the report, and continue to check this space for updates! This study will continue into 2026.
Disclaimer: The foregoing is publicly available information about upcoming events, resources, and reminders from third-party organizations. In some cases, Raising Illinois & Start Early have included links to other websites that are not owned or controlled in any way by Raising Illinois or Start Early, but that contain additional information about the events, resources or reminders. By clicking on any of the links above, you agree to be directed to the external website and you acknowledge and agree that Raising Illinois & Start Early shall not be held responsible or accountable for any information contained on such site. Please note that Raising Illinois & Start Early do not monitor any of the websites linked herein and do not endorse or approve any information posted on any such sites.