GREAT NEWS! Generous sponsors of the Celebrate Children Day Giving Challenge have offered to extend the donation deadline to 11:59pm on Friday, April 16th, giving you 2 MORE DAYS to join in! And, in order to help our participating organizations earn the challenge funds, the match will be provided as follows:

• When the total reaches $5,000 in donations, the pool will earn $5,000.
• After that, donations will be matched dollar for dollar up to an additional $10,000.

This is still a great opportunity to help seven statewide organizations.

A gift of just $10 helps us to meet the match requirement. Please consider giving at any amount you are able.

Thank you so much for supporting Birth to Five early learning in Wisconsin!

Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA)
WECA is a statewide, nonprofit organization serving as a professional association whose members care for and educate Wisconsin's children aged birth to eight. WECA administers and operates T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® WISCONSIN, a national model providing access to credit-based educational scholarship opportunities for early childhood teachers, family child care providers, directors and administrators who work in regulated settings. The scholarship program links education, compensation and retention to improving the quality of care and education experiences for young children and their families.

Supporting Families Together Association (SFTA)
Supporting Families Together Association coordinates early childhood and family support systems through Resource & Referral Agencies and Family Resource Centers. Resource & Referral Agencies connect parents with child care services, develop professionals who care for and educate children; analyze and report child care data that impacts communities; and implement innovative child care quality improvement programs. Family Resource Centers throughout Wisconsin provide training, technical assistance, and support services to children and families.

Parents Plus, Inc. (PPI)
Parents Plus provides home-based education for families with young children, relationship building for new and expectant parents, and programs that foster parental involvement in schools for improved student achievement. Programs include Family-School-Community Partnerships, Early Years Home Visitation Project, Parents as Teachers curriculum, and Parents are Key. PPI also offers professional development and support to professionals in the fields of early childhood, education and family services.

Wisconsin Alliance for Infant Mental Health
Wisconsin Alliance for Infant Mental Health provides parents and people working with young children (such as child care workers, home visitors, and pediatricians) the knowledge, skills and practices that support healthy social and emotional development of children from birth to age five. A recent focus has been the development of a Wisconsin Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Plan, a blueprint for comprehensive care that includes prevention, early intervention and treatment. The Alliance is launching a partnership with the University of Wisconsin this year to offer a Mental Health Certificate advanced education program for professionals.

Wisconsin Council on Children and Families
The Council is a multi-issue child and family advocacy organization, providing research, policy analysis, public education and advocacy that lead to improved outcomes for children in the areas of health, economic security, safety and education. We believe that children need strong voices representing them, and so are committed to using research, policy analysis, and public education to raise voices to make every kid count.

Partnership for Wisconsin's Economic Success
Partnership for Wisconsin's Economic Success is a consortium involving business executives, economists, elected officials, nonprofit executives and community leaders throughout the state who believe that investing in high-quality early childhood education is essential economic policy. The Partnership's research will inform Wisconsin about how to secure its economic future by helping all children become successful adults - literate, numerate, job-ready and team-capable. The Partnership will assist in leading advocacy efforts and garnering public and private support for early learning initiatives.

Celebrate Children Foundation (Challenge Coordinator)
The Celebrate Children Foundation helps Wisconsin communities create and support the most effective early learning systems for children from birth to age five. The Foundation is working to grow a public-private fund. This fund will support proven initiatives that reach children at a critical developmental time and help promote their growth as healthy, engaged citizens. Through the sale of Celebrate Children license plates, the Foundation has created a permanent endowment to ensure that it can continue to make investments on behalf of young children throughout the state.