Illuminating 2022 Policy Agenda
For Colorado to remain one of the healthiest economies in the country we need to work together to build brighter childhoods.
Our future workforce, innovators, leaders and community members can only reach their full potential through thoughtful development and investment in services and policies that strengthen families and protect children. Investing in programs and policies that support families to overcome and bounce back from life’s challenges enables children to achieve their potential and grow up to be good neighbors and productive community members.
Crafted to ensure our state’s policies build brighter childhoods for all Coloradans, Illuminate’s policy agenda offers a framework for advancing family strengthening now and into the future. However, Illuminate has prioritized 2022 policy solutions to be responsive to what Colorado families need today.
Illuminating Policy Prevents Child Maltreatment
Illuminate Colorado strengthens families, organizations and communities to prevent child maltreatment. The organization works across all levels of prevention–before child maltreatment has occurred, when families are in high stress situations, and after child maltreatment has occurred–to build research-based protective factors in families and communities and to ensure appropriate system and community responses.
Five protective factors have been found to prevent child maltreatment.
The Illuminate Colorado 2022 policy agenda highlights policies that support the development of one or more protective factors in order to build brighter childhoods for Coloradans.
Parental Resilience
Social Connections
Concrete Supports in times of Need
Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development
Social & Emotional Competence of Children
Primary Prevention
These strategies build protective factors in all families to prevent child maltreatment before it occurs—including advancing equity by addressing systemic barriers to building protective factors.
Policy Priority
Prioritize primary prevention in federal and state budgets by investing in proven services and professional education that support families and keep kids safe.
Promote access to high-quality preschool
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Promote access to nurturing and safe child care
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Promote access to evidence-based home visiting programs
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Promote access to family resource centers
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Promote access to safe, engaging after school programs and activities
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Promote access to medical care and behavioral health service, including family planning
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Promote access to evidence-based programs to prevent child sexual abuse
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Policy Priority
Strengthen Economic Supports to Families
Expand access to Quality, Affordable and Stable Housing
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Expand access to Quality, Affordable, Convenient, and Culturally-Appropriate Food (including through WIC, SNAP, and federal child nutrition programs)
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Expand access to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Expand access to the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Expand access to Tax Credits
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Policy Priority
Implement Family Friendly Work Policies
Expand Paid Family and Medical Leave Policies
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Increase the Minimum Wage
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
Secondary Prevention
This focused strategy builds protective factors in families in high stress situations to prevent child maltreatment before it occurs.
Policy Priority
Ensure and expand tailored, non-stigmatizing, and culturally responsive support for families where needed
Expand support for families impacted by behavioral health, including both parental and pediatric
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Social Connections |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Expand support for families impacted by intellectual and developmental disabilities, including fetal alcohol spectrum disorders
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Social Connections |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Expand support for families impacted by intimate partner violence
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Social Connections |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Tertiary Prevention
This strategy builds protective factors in families to prevent recurrence of child maltreatment–including addressing systemic barriers to healing & recovery.
Policy Priority
Ensure Communities Identify and Support Children and Families When Abuse and Neglect has Occurred
Ensure equitable access to services to support healing and recovery
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+ Parental Resilience |
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+ Social Connections |
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+ Concrete Supports in Times of Need |
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+ Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development |
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+ Social and Emotional Competence of Children |
Wondering how a policy prevents child maltreatment?
The Illuminate Colorado 2022 policy agenda highlights policies that build one or more protective factors in Colorado.
To learn more about each policy priority and how we can help you can strengthen families in your community, contact us.
