Annual advocacy day to feature first-ever Strolling Thunderâ„¢ Arizona; encourages policymakers to Think Babiesâ„¢

The Arizona Early Childhood Alliance (AZECA) will host its Early Childhood Day on Wednesday, March 11, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Arizona State Capitol. The annual day of advocacy brings together families and early childhood champions to raise awareness of the importance of a child’s earliest years.

“This is a vital opportunity to show policymakers how early childhood links to their priorities and the impact early childhood investments have made in communities across our state,” says Rebecca Gau, executive director of Stand for Children Arizona and co-chair of the AZECA leadership team. “The importance of early childhood experiences is gaining recognition, but less than one in four preschoolers is in a quality setting. We need to do better than that.”

Throughout the morning, families and early childhood advocates will attend breakout sessions on a variety of legislative topics and will have the opportunity to meet with their legislators. The Early Childhood Day will also feature Arizona’s first-ever Strolling Thunder™, a flagship advocacy event of ZERO TO THREE’s national Think Babies™ campaign to bring attention to the many issues that affect what babies and families need to thrive. Key priorities include quality and affordable child care, time for parents to bond with their babies, nurturing healthy emotional development and promoting strong physical health and nutrition.

The Arizona State Capitol is located at 1700 W. Washington St., Phoenix, AZ 85007. Advance registration for the AZECA Early Childhood Day is required at azeca.org.

Also, learn more at http://www.thinkbabies.org or follow @ZEROTOTHREE on Twitter.