It is with great excitement and deep gratitude that we share NAEYC’s newest position statement, Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education.

Unanimously adopted by NAEYC's National Governing Board, this bold statement joins four others (developmentally appropriate practice--currently under revision; early learning standards; professional competencies--currenly under revision; and the Code of Ethics) to make up the five foundational position statements that NAEYC has developed in collaboration with the early childhood profession. Endorsed by more than 100 leading organizations, including Affiliates and national partners, it builds on decades of anti-bias work, reflects your thoughtful feedback and comments, and stands on the shoulders of leaders at NAEYC and across the early childhood field, many of whom were valued contributors to the development of the statement itself. At the same time, this statement breaks new ground for the field and for NAEYC, explicitly and unequivocally affirming that all children have the right to equitable learning opportunities and that all early childhood educators have a professional obligation to advance equity. 

The bulk of the statement is dedicated to exploring these rights and responsibilities, providing educators, administrators, and policymakers with guidance and recommendations on what it means, what it takes, and why it is necessary to advance equity in early childhood education.   

No matter your role, we hope you will read the statement today, and commit to sharing it with your colleagues, both online and in person. Feel free to use the sample social media posts below or to create your own! (Right click to save the image to your desktop and post on your own social media!)

We also hope you will come back to the statement tomorrow, and in the weeks, months, and years to come. We hope you will join us in grappling with the difficult, necessary, and rewarding work of recognizing and reducing our individual biases and institutional inequities, while simultaneously celebrating the opportunities we have to help all children achieve their full potential. We hope you will advocate with us for the changes in research, policy, and practice that are needed to advance equity in early childhood education. And we hope you will hold yourselves, each other, and the systems around you accountable for being reflective, intentional, and supportive in helping ensure early childhood educators can fulfil their mission as part of a diverse, well-prepared, and well-compensated profession. 

Finally, as members, stakeholders, allies, and friends, we hope you will hold NAEYC accountable for living up to the values and actions articulated in this statement. As we work to make progress every day toward our goal of being high-performing and inclusive organizations, we have committed to deep internal reflection and action. We have changed everything from employee recruitment and retention, leadership pipelines, Governing Board nominations, authors and publishing content choices to conference speaker selection and policy priorities. We welcome your company on this journey, and invite you to help us be the best NAEYC we can be. 

Thank you for your partnership, and for the critical, life-changing work you do with and for children and families each and every day.