Dear First 5 Colleagues:
Twenty years ago, voters passed Proposition 10, creating and entrusting First 5 to be an influential voice for policies that provide better opportunities for California’s young children and families. The investments and partnerships of First 5 and its life-changing outcomes for children and families across California have created a crucial policy story that must be shared with policy makers. Whether the goal is finding resources to prevent the erosion of impactful local investments, using our experience to better hone child and family support policies, or taking innovative First 5 pilots to scale statewide, we have a responsibility to share the First 5 story with every elected official.
As the saying goes, “All politics are local.” That’s why policy education for individual elected officials and policy makers in each county is critical for furthering the goals and intent of Proposition 10. First 5’s 20th anniversary provides an ideal opportunity to highlight the work we’ve done in our counties in the last two decades, while also illustrating the continuing needs of our kids and families, and First 5’s vision and plans for addressing those needs.
Town hall forums are a traditional and effective stage for local public engagement on policy issues, and drive home to elected officials and the general public the importance of the town hall’s specific topics. When we use the term “town hall” in this document, we mean to suggest an event whose purpose is policy education and change. However, the form this event takes is up to each commission; a town hall could comprise a panel discussion, a lunchtime table-top conversation among attendees, or an informal celebration. Commissions know best what makes the most sense in their communities.
This toolkit is meant to be a resource for interested First 5 county commissions to engage with their local, state, and federal elected officials, and to build public will for the First 5 movement at the local level. It contains crucial advice and information for designing an effective event, whether a commission is conducting this public service for the first time, or as old pros. We recognize that an issue-based event with elected officials and stakeholder attendees can be challenging to execute successfully, and a toolkit cannot address all situations and details. Please let us know how we can help. We are working in collaboration with First 5 Association to offer technical assistance on a first-come, first-served basis to interested county commissions in 2018 and 2019. Please contact or for more information.
Here at First 5 California, we look forward to continuing our work with all of our First 5 partners to engage policymakers, build influential local constituencies, and, ultimately, advance the First 5 movement across communities. Together we can make progress on the shared priorities of First 5 California, First 5 Association, and First 5 county commissions across the state.
Sincerely,
We want to acknowledge and thank the First 5 Association and its members for their policy insights and contributions to the development of the First 5 20th Anniversary Toolkit.
The 20-year anniversary of First 5 is an ideal time to take stock of how far First 5s have come in achieving our goals for young kids and families, as well as to set a course for the future. In the face of tobacco tax revenues that continue to decline, First 5 and its partners continue to refine their programs and practices to best meet the needs of young children. A critical element to continuing our work is impressing upon our elected officials how important and influential our work is-- and what we still need to bring it to scale. Town hall forums are an incredibly effective stage for educating and influencing policymakers, providing the perfect combination of issue expertise and constituent relevance.
The best part about hosting a town hall is that any approach is right; the structure and content can be determined locally. Since many issues that affect counties are in fact regional, we encourage regional coordination in planning events. The main goals of the event are to:
The most important outcome of the event is to make the county or regional First 5s a trusted resource for local representatives who will influence the future of children's policy and funding.
In our “What’s Inside the Toolkit?” overview below, you’ll find a menu of advice and tools to help you plan and execute a successful town hall event marking First 5’s 20th Anniversary. The links below lead you through all of the resources available, including templates for in-print items such as agendas, issue papers, and panelist questions. Each section begins with an overview of the featured topic, followed by customizable materials; each section builds on the one before it. Throughout the toolkit, you will find helpful “First 5 Tips” and references to other sections for related information and additional details.
Before you dive into the Toolkit, here is how First 5 Counties have used it!
Fresno County has one of the highest infant mortality and preterm birth rates in California and across the country. To highlight this local issue, First 5 Fresno hosted a live town hall meeting on its local TV news affiliate. The town hall included a diverse set of panelists (including the district attorney, a county supervisor, a rural mayor, a county superintendent of schools, and a state senator) to discuss preterm births and infant mortality from all aspects.
The news anchor who moderated the town hall also helped produce three story packages to communicate the issue across the community. While the live town hall was only one night, these video stories continue to be shared and convey the message of the community’s work to address preterm births.
● Watch the video here.
Why not show instead of tell? First 5 Santa Barbara, alongside partners and sponsors, invited community and philanthropic leaders to join a day-long bus tour to the north side of county to see key First 5 investments in action, and visit an area of the county that is often overlooked and misunderstood.
The day not only featured First 5 investments, it also highlighted the effectiveness of the public, non-profit, and private investments that comprise the safety net in the north side of the county. The event was so popular that First 5 Santa Barbara ended up hiring a second bus to accommodate those interested in attending.
● First 5 Santa Barbara Bus Tour Guide
Additional videos that First 5 Placer and First 5 Sacramento made for their Town Halls can be seen below.
Town hall events are meant to be customized so that commissions can focus on the policy issue(s) most critical to the wellbeing of young children in their counties or regions. Once the issue(s) are determined, commissions can use the example format and agendas in this section to begin planning the overall structure and content of the event.
Overview and Tips
Sample Internal Agenda
Sample External Agenda
In this section, you will learn more about the type of topics and the key participants that can make your town hall a success.
Panelist Prep Packet
Policymaker Invitation Letter Template
Sample Partner/Guest List
Ask your presenters to focus on outlining the most compelling statistics and high level points, and offer additional information, facts and figures, etc., in a handout. High-level presentations help keep your audience’s attention during a short timeframe!
Whenever possible, make presentations more personal by showing the faces of First 5 in your community — the grantee partners, community organizations, and the children and families who are impacted by First 5. Real beneficiaries are your best advocates!
Hold your panelist prep session at a location you plan to highlight during the town hall. This will make the issues real and the preparation more meaningful, not to mention that during the town hall policymakers can say they saw the program first hand.
In this section, you will learn the “nuts and bolts” of planning and executing your town hall. From finding partners to help share in the event workload, to doing the post-town hall follow-up work that will lay the groundwork for next year’s not-to-be-missed town hall.
Planning Timeline
Sample Event Budget
One way to maximize resources and expand the event’s reach is to partner with neighboring First 5 county commissions to host a regionally focused town hall. Not only can each contribute its own ideas, strengths, connections, and resources to making the event a success, partnering also can be an opportunity to showcase aligned multi-county or regional policy agendas.
Ensure guests who are parents can attend by providing free on-site child care during the event. Make sure to include information on all of your guest invitation materials that the event will offer free on-site child care. In the RSVP section of your invitation, ask guests to check a box if they will need child care during the event (so you get a sense of total children when you are budgeting for your event).
Consider asking a high-profile community influencer, such as a county commissioner, to meet and greet participants and guests as they arrive to help create an inviting atmosphere. Also, designate a commission staff member who is well briefed on participants (backgrounds and photos), as well as the event’s content and flow, to greet participants and address any last-minute questions they may have.
It is vitally important you talk with participating policymakers in advance of the town hall about the First 5 Pledge — what it means to the event and what you will be asking them to do. Provide a copy of the First 5 Pledge Card (for policymakers) should you choose to use it. You don’t want them to be caught off guard, especially in a public setting.
In this section, you’ll find tips and tools for promoting your town hall — to attract an audience for your event, as well as to get exposure for First 5 issues and your work in the community. This section addresses outreach through three primary avenues: traditional media, social media, and paid advertising.
Pre-Event Media Advisory Template
Post-Event Press Release Template
Work with participating policymakers’ staff to promote the town hall. They have a vested interest in maximizing the number of guests and the caliber of the audience, so coordination provides an opportunity for elected officials to showcase their involvement in First 5 and the issues. In close coordination with and approval by their staff, offer reporters pre-event (or post-event) interviews with policymakers, as available. Explore opportunities to co-author an editorial piece focused on the issues.
At the very least, this coordination helps to further build relationships and ensure policymakers are not caught off guard about media attention for the town hall.
Build interest in your town hall by highlighting an event “snippet” on your website and/or other communication channels with each planning milestone as the event draws closer.
The Sample Media Plan in this section outlines ideas for weekly outreach beginning at about six weeks before your event. These are just ideas — the frequency and content of each communication is completely up to you.
Remember to include your partners and sponsors in all of your outreach materials to provide them with as much exposure as possible as a “thank you” for their hard work and support. This includes aligning your website posts, listserv e-blasts, etc. with your partners whenever possible by asking them if they would be willing to share them with their networks as well.
Access these fully-customizable issue-specific tools that will help inform your town hall audience and participants, and set the stage to ask policymakers to take the First 5 Pledge. These resources are meant to make it easy for you to customize the content based on the issues you believe are most important to your local community.
This customizable 20th anniversary video provides a high-level overview of who First 5s are, the work we have done over the last 20 years, and where we hope to go in the future. Click below to view, or if you would like to customize the video, click here to download.
These customizable templates are tailored specifically for a town hall-type setting. Each of the five issue papers is written in simple language targeted to a policymaker audience. They include specific actionable policy changes, which were developed in partnership between the First 5 Association and First 5 California, and are targeted for state-level policymakers in the 2016 and 2017 legislative years.
The First 5 Association has developed a series of policy and advocacy materials, including one-page policy fact sheets that reflect the Association’s policy agenda. While not developed specifically for a town hall audience, these materials provide additional background information on each topic that may be useful as you plan your event.
Each Issue Paper’s Calls to Action were written with state-level policymakers in mind. If your panel includes policymakers at various levels of government, tailor the Calls to Action to be relevant to your particular panel. Look for or create a nexus between local government, community or regional policies, and/or federal-level efforts to adjust the Calls to Action accordingly.
With limited time during a 90-minute event to provide an overview and context for the issues, we recommend featuring up to three issues that are most relevant and timely for your community Curating the number of issues covered will help First 5 have a unified voice, increasing the likelihood that our messages and Calls to Action gain a collective momentum across the state. Focusing on fewer policy areas may ultimately make it easier for policymakers to commit to taking action on those areas.
If your panel also includes expert speakers or policymakers at various levels of government (local, state and/or federal), modify questions to be relevant to your panelists. Think about the mix of questions to include (generic or specific, pointed questions).
Select an area below to view the corresponding tools.
Overview and Tips
Overview and Tips
First 5 Pledge Card Template (Policymakers)
First 5 Pledge Card Template (Guests)
Overview and Tips
Pitching the Media for your 20th Anniversary Event
Overview and Tips
First 5 Issue Paper:
First 5 Issue Paper:
First 5 Issue Paper:
First 5 Issue Paper:
First 5 Issue Paper:
First 5 Talk. Read. Sing.® Brain Development Card
First 5 Association Fact Sheet:
First 5 Association Fact Sheet:
First 5 Association Fact Sheet:
First 5 Association Fact Sheet:
