The Children's Defense Fund has worked relentlessly for more than 35 years to ensure a level playing field for all children. We champion policies and programs that lift children out of poverty; protect them from abuse and neglect; and ensure their access to health care, quality education, and a moral and spiritual foundation. CDF advocates nationwide on behalf of children to ensure children are always a priority.

To achieve our vision for children, our three-year strategic plan focuses on four priorities for children:

• The Health Coverage for All Children Campaign to secure comprehensive health and mental health coverage for every child and pregnant woman;
• The Cradle to Prison Pipeline^® Campaign to stop the funneling of tens of thousands of youth down life paths that often lead to prison;
• Developing youth leaders who will become the next generation of child advocates; and
• Ending child poverty and stabilizing families.

Children in Poverty in 2008: The New Census Numbers

In September, the latest data on poverty in the United States was released by the U.S. Census Bureau. As expected, the statistics are illustrative of the significant impact the economic crisis has had on Americans. The number of people in America living in poverty rose by 2.5 million, painting a particularly bleak picture for our nation’s children.

Read more about what the latest poverty statistics mean for children.

New Guide for the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act

The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act, signed into law by President Bush on October 7, 2008, represents the most significant federal reforms for abused and neglected children in foster care in more than a decade. The act's numerous improvements are all intended to achieve better outcomes for children who are at risk of entering or have spent time in foster care. These reforms represented significant first steps, but there is additional work to be done. These reforms will mean little to children unless and until they are effectively implemented so as to truly benefit children.

The New Help for Children Raised by Grandparents and Other Relatives: Questions and Answers About the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008, is intended to help ensure full and prompt implementation of the improvements in this new act.

Early Childhood Development Legislative Update

On November 6, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the Access to Nutritious Meals for Young Children Act (S. 2749), which would expand the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to improve access to nutritious meals for young children in child care. To learn more about this bill and other important pieces of early childhood legislation, visit our Early Childhood Development Legislative Update.

CDF Trains Young Adults in Community Organizing

In March 2009, young adults from across the country attended the 2009 Young Advocate Leadership Training (YALT^SM) program at CDF Haley Farm. The training focused on organizing communities and campuses around health care reform in 2009, especially health care reform for children. Participants developed their own customized action plans to organize a variety of activities to support health reform such as meeting with elected officials, letter writing campaigns, petition drives, rallies and collecting personal stories to deliver to elected officials. Learn more about the YALT program.

National/California Cradle to Prison Pipeline Summit

In February 2009, CDF and several co-conveners held a two-day National/California Cradle to Prison Pipeline Summit in Sacramento, California. The nearly 500 attendees shared promising approaches and developed community action plans to stop the funneling of thousands of children down a pipeline to prison. Since the launch of the Cradle to Prison Pipeline campaign in 2007, CDF has continued to raise public awareness about this crisis, catalyze action at the local, state and federal levels to form "Cradle coalitions," and help train the next generation of leaders committed to dismantling the pipeline through events like this. Learn more about this most recent summit and upcoming events.

State of America's Children 2008^® Report

CDF recently released its State of America's Children 2008 report, a compilation of the most recent and reliable national and state-by-state data on poverty, health, child welfare, youth at risk, early childhood development, education, nutrition and housing. The report provides a statistical compendium of key child data showing epidemic numbers of children at risk: the number of poor children has increased nearly 500,000 to 13.3 million, with 5.8 million of them living in extreme poverty, and more than 8 million children lack health coverage―with both numbers likely to increase during the recession. The number of children and teens killed by firearms also increased after years of decline. Learn more and download the report.

The American Recovery and Investment Act: Key Provisions and Funding Resources 

The economic recovery law passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama contains numerous provisions that will stimulate the economy and help children and families. Learn more about the key provisions that will offer significant relief to millions of struggling children and families and help put the country on the road towards economic stability.

Learn how your community can use these funds to invest in children and families! Our guide, The New Economic Recovery Law: Resources to Help Children and the Economy, provides information on the Recovery Act funding and program activities available in your state and community.