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Senator Rhonda Fields, a long-time champion of home visiting, and Constance Gully, President of Parents as Teachers, teamed up to author an opinion piece for the Colorado Sun<\/a> about the essential role of parents in early childhood discussions. Gully and Fields argue that Colorado’s increased investment in early childhood is important and should be lauded, but that still more is needed. Investing in parents and supporting parents is a critical part of the early childhood equation.<\/p>\n So while Colorado “has made bold investments in early childhood including its new universal preschool program and Department of Early Childhood…they are not enough. Colorado needs to fill in the gaps to help parents become the best caretakers and teachers their children will ever have and to ensure that every child \u2014 even those who do not attend preschool \u2014 is ready for school.”<\/p>\n They argue that support for home visiting programs is essential and call upon Congress to reauthorize Maternal Infant Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) funding before it expires at the end of September.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Opinion: Don\u2019t overlook parents in the early-education equation<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n