Justice, Equity, and Belonging:
A Commitment to Ongoing Learning
Justice
Justice refers to fairness in terms of the distribution of benefits and burdens in society. In a just society, everyone is treated fairly and no one is discriminated against or unfairly disadvantaged. Justice means dismantling barriers (racism, classism, sexism, ableism, and other ‘isms’) and rebuilding the system to make it equitable for everyone.
Equity
Equity refers to fairness in terms of resources, opportunities, and treatment. It focuses on ensuring that individuals have access to the same resources and opportunities regardless of their starting point. Equity means using resources to adapt to a broken or unjust system. As stated by The Avarna Group, “Equity is the approach. Equality is the outcome.”
Belonging
Belonging refers to creating a sense of connectedness, acceptance, and inclusion. It involves creating an environment where people feel valued, respected, and supported for who they are. To create belonging, we must center, value, and amplify the voices, perspectives, and experiences of those who experience more barriers based on their identities.
About the J.E.B. Collaborative
ECCLA commits to the process of ensuring equity, dismantling systems of racism, ableism, sexism, and other systems of oppression while supporting young children, families, and early childhood professionals to have a voice as their true selves in our early childhood system. We recognize that this process will take time for our organization and we commit to continuing to learn more and grow to authentically and responsively support equity, diversity, and inclusion in the early childhood system.
With this vision in mind, ECCLA staff have come together to create the Justice, Equity, and Belonging Collaborative as an advisory committee and a community of professionals who wish to grow together. We invite you to check out our Resource Library featuring JEB/DEI resources for early childhood professionals working across the sector, as well as read our 2023 Action Plan to learn more about how we intend to cultivate an environment of belonging and inclusion within ECCLA and our early childhood community.
Shannon Hall
(she/her)
Cameron Fall
(he/him)
Enola Garland
(she/her)
Stephanie Martin
(she/her)
Dallas Brown
(she/her/they/them)
ECCLA envisions an early childhood system that promotes thriving young children, their families, and communities. In order for this vision to become a reality, ECCLA recognizes that we must work with partners to dismantle systemic racism and biases that have been present in early childhood education. To do this, we commit to building and strengthening formal partnerships with organizations that are focused on early childhood and racial justice and learning where we can authentically lend support and resources to lift up the work that dismantles systemic racism, bias, and exclusion in the early childhood system.
We recognize that we cannot do this work effectively without including outside voices and perspectives. We are identifying and reaching out to other organizations, but we may miss some. If your organization is interested in collaborating or partnering to create an environment of justice, equity, and belonging for young children, families, and early childhood professionals, then we invite you to reach out to Cameron Fall.
ECCLA utilizes the following Logic Model as a guide in our work to ensure equity, dismantle systems of racism, ableism, sexism, and other systems of oppression while supporting young children, families, and early childhood professionals to have a voice as their true selves in our early childhood system. Logic Models are effective tools to assist in program planning, implementation, management, evaluation, and reporting. They help define a program or project’s intended impact and goals; the sequence of intended effects; which activities are to produce which effect; and where to focus outcome and process evaluations.
Need our Logic Model translated? Please contact Cameron Fall.
The Early Childhood Council Leadership Alliance (ECCLA) is committed to taking action to address the inequities that children, families, and professionals face in our early childhood system. An integral component of ECCLA’s Justice, Equity, and Belonging (J.E.B.) Collaborative is the creation and implementation of annual Action Plans that highlight the annual goals we have for our organization related to Justice, Equity, and Belonging. Click below to explore ECCLA’s 2022, 2023, and 2024-2027 Action Plans. For questions about ECCLA’s J.E.B. Action Plans, please reach out to Cameron Fall.
Previous Action Plans and Progress Reports
Current Action Plan
Goal 1: Maintain and enhance equitable and accessible processes and programming within ECCLA.
Objectives and Actions
1. Ensure that both internal and external communications are available in multiple languages, and that services are accessible to individuals with diverse abilities and language proficiencies.
- Continue to identify ways to improve communications and accessibility of scholarship and grant applications for dual language learners and diverse abilities.
- Research common languages used in Colorado by early childhood families and professionals.
- Ensure that live translation and interpretation services are available to support direct services, scholarship/grant applicants, and ECCLA Membership.
- Develop culturally responsive data collection, reporting, and usage strategies.
2. Create and engage in an organizational equity audit.
- Research and compile equity audits for review.
- Create an equity audit tailored to ECCLA and ECCLA Membership.
- Utilize the Equity Decision-Making Tool during creation.
3. Expand ECCLA’s professional network to include organizations engaged in JEB work.
- Develop informal and formal partnerships with organizations engaged in JEB work to support each other’s work and to be resources for each other.
4. Explore the creation and development of a JEB Community of Practice where individuals and organizations can collaborate and share resources, best practices, professional learning, and advocacy opportunities.
Goal 2: Maintain and enhance equitable and accessible processes and programming within ECCLA Membership.
Objectives and Actions
1. Provide technical assistance to ECCLA Membership that aligns with the results of the JEB Needs Survey.
- Provide professional development, coaching, consultation, mentoring, and communities of practice for ECCLA Membership.
- Provide support with equity audits as well as the creation and implementation of JEB goals.
2. Continue to explore ways to support ECCLA Membership.
Goal 3: Increase participation in and development of professional development opportunities.
Objectives and Actions
1. Encourage JEB Collaborative members to participate in at least 2 continuing professional development and advocacy opportunities annually.
- Participate in book clubs, events, rallies, protests, etc. that further our learning around JEB and invite ECCLA Membership and other stakeholders.
- Share articles, videos, resources, and other JEB media through a mailing list for ECCLA Membership and other stakeholders.
- Continue to share resources and professional development through ECCLA’s JEB Resource Collection.
- Continue to create JEB resources that cater to diverse learning styles and needs, ensuring resources are easily accessible and relevant.
2. Continue to offer professional development opportunities to ECCLA Membership and the early childhood community.
- Continue to work with partners to offer diverse and co-created training opportunities.