Texas takes the lead in discussing how best to advocate for Latino families with infants and toddlers

Meeting the needs of historically underserved populations of infants and toddlers has always been a challenge in the United States, even more so when it comes to Latinos. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, of the 10,000 babies born in the United States every day, one in four are Latino, and that ratio is expected to increase to one in three by 2060 (U.S. Census Bureau). In the state of Texas, that ratio is one in two. The U.S. Census reports that Hispanic families are now the largest ethnic group, representing 40.2% of the overall state population. 

Recognizing both the urgency and the learning opportunity in these numbers, last month dozens of parents, community leaders, policymakers and early childhood advocates gathered at the UnidosUS Affiliate AVANCE Carmen P. Cortez Family Center in San Antonio, Texas for “Building a Brighter Future: Empowering Latino Families through Early Childhood Education,” a roundtable discussion centered on best strategies for ensuring equitable access to high-quality early childhood education (ECE). 

“Investing in early childhood education for Latino children is critical to building a stronger future for Texas,” says Eric Holguin, Texas State Director at UnidosUS. “By ensuring Latino kids have access to high-quality early childhood education, we’re not just supporting the development of our youngest learners, we’re laying the groundwork for the long-term success of Latino families and the economic future of our state.” 

Sponsored by the Latino Infant Initiative (LII), a collaborative effort by Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors and UnidosUS to improve the quality of life for Latino infants (prenatal to age three), the event focused on LII’s four key areas: education, health, economic security and immigration, and the intersectional experiences Latinos face in all of them. It also celebrated the launch of the LII’s official website, www.latinoinfants.org, and the culmination of AVANCE’s 50-year anniversary as Texas’s first and now largest Latino ECE leader. The funding for all of these activities comes largely from a multi-year grant from the Pritzker Children’s Initiative. 

Learning from 50 years of AVANCE’s ECE Work

Prior to joining the roundtable discussion, visitors were invited to tour the AVANCE Carmen P. Cortez Family Center so that they could see AVANCE’s culturally responsive ECE programs in action through the observation of classroom activities, parent leadership classes, engagement with staff and a five-decade overview of AVANCE’s evolution. 

Participants of the roundtable event split into groups of five and then, guided by AVANCE staff, they were able to tour various program rooms for babies and for one and two-year-olds, observing how staff helped stimulate them to speak and respond in both Spanish and English. They also had an opportunity to see a parent leadership class where parents were learning to use everyday resources they have in their homes to make toys as teaching tools for their young children. This innovative instruction for both infants and parents is a long-time AVANCE model, in fact 40% of the teachers are parents who graduated from the nine-month, parent-engagement program. 

“It was truly inspiring to witness a diverse gathering of stakeholders, including early learning providers, parents and non-profit leaders, uniting in San Antonio, Texas. Together, we explored the tremendous possibilities of creating a world-class early childhood system that meets the needs of Latino families and beyond,” said Adrián A. Pedroza National Executive Director of Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors.

“At AVANCE, we know that access to quality early education is essential for Latino families to thrive,” said Dr. Teresa Granillo, CEO of AVANCE. “By removing barriers to early learning, we’re empowering children and their parents, supporting families and transforming entire communities for a brighter future.” 

From Data Collection to Programmatic and Policy Planning

The roundtable discussion itself kicked off with an overview of LII’s ongoing efforts to build on practices like the ones seen at AVANCE, and with the findings of LII’s National Latino Family Report 2024. According to that study, 91% of Latino families in Texas support greater investment in programs that support child learning and resources for families, and more families would be leveraging these programs if they could afford them. 

For example, less than half —52% of Latino families with children under age three— haven’t received any child care since birth, and one third of these families said this was because the care was cost-prohibitive. Another top concern was that of dual-language learning, with 65% of them saying they’d enroll their children if such programs were available. Only 52% reported having enrolled or planning to enroll their children in bilingual education. They also recognized that the quality of these services hinge on the ability of programs to staff them with a well-paid, well-trained, culturally responsive early childhood workforce, with 91% of Latino parents and caregivers reporting that they would support an increase in educator compensation. 

“These findings highlight the urgent need for affordable, culturally responsive early childhood programs. Latino families want bilingual programs, but face barriers like high costs and limited access. Investing in better pay and training for early childhood educators is key to ensuring quality care and meeting the needs of our communities” Tania Villarroel, Policy Advisor Early Childhood Education, UnidosUS.

At the state and local level, participants said they wanted to see increased,  flexible funding that grows programming options and improves access for parents who may currently be locked out of subsidies due to restrictions such as work-hour requirements or caps on income that don’t represent the current economic realities of low-income and working class families. They also said they wanted to see more strategic planning and resources for scaling up successful culturally responsive curricula that promote among other key components, multilingualism for Texas’ increasingly diverse early childhood population. This would include the increased provision of specialized teacher training in cultural competency.  

In the spirit of LII, participants noted the power of making this happen through coalition building with diverse stakeholders who regularly engage local and state policymakers.

“To truly support Latino families, we need to unite efforts —parents, educators, policymakers and community leaders. Through conversations with families and data collection, UnidosUS and Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors have developed the LII Policy Agenda, a comprehensive roadmap that addresses key areas: education, health, economic security and immigration. Now, it’s time to work together to turn this vision into reality,” said Tania Villarroel, Policy Advisor, Early Childhood Education, UnidosUS.

Many of these same issues are also priorities laid out in the LII Policy Agenda, which has eight goals, which are divided into four intersectional categories: 

Education 

• GOAL I: Improve access to high-quality, culturally and linguistically responsive early childhood education programs and reach more children, particularly dual language learners (DLLs). 
• GOAL 2: Retain support and develop Latinos in the prenatal to age three workforce to meet the need for a diverse and qualified workforce that reflects today’s multicultural and multilingual population. 

GOAL 3: Support family engagement that acknowledges the historical legacy of language suppression and respects home languages(s). 

Health

• GOAL 4: Improve access to health care, including mental health, for pregnant women and families of infants and toddlers. 
• GOAL 5: Improve access to healthy and affordable food for families with young children and expecting parents. 
• GOAL 6: Address gun violence as a civil rights and public health crisis in response to community concerns for child well-being. 
• GOAL 7: Improve the economic well-being of pregnant women and families of infants and toddlers. 

Immigration

• GOAL 8: Pass policies that address the needs of all children and center the dignity and humanity of immigrants and their families. 

A Website Full of Virtual Resources

Built by Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors and UnidosUS, the new website, which was inaugurated the same day as the event in San Antonio, offers a wide range of resources to drive conversation in key states like Texas and all across the nation. It includes the full LII Policy Agenda, compete with extensive data and policy recommendations; special, semi-yearly reports on the state of Latino infants, toddlers, their families and the policies impacting their well-being; and webinars providing the latest best practices on everything from parenting to promoting multilingualism. The website also provides links to mainstream news stories citing LII and providing insights into the way conversations on Latino early childhood play out in the broader U.S. public, and finally, the website lists the names and organizational affiliations of LII’s advisory council. 

LII is hopeful this site will contribute to an ongoing national conversation on Latino infants, babies, and their families and encourages interested parties to go there to register so that they can quickly receive alerts on LII’s latest reports and online and in-person events. 

“Building communities and systems that prioritize the well-being of children and families is a collective effort that requires the involvement of all community stakeholders,” said Pedroza. Whether you’re a business owner, parent, politician or tradesperson, you play a vital role in ensuring our nation’s children have a strong start in life. Your voice and advocacy are essential.”

–Author Julienne Gage is a former UnidosUS Senior Web Content Manager now working on a PhD in sociocultural anthropology at Florida International University.