upstream investments champions toolkit: talking points

Early childhood education systems work.

High quality early childhood education is critical to uprooting poverty, ending disparities and providing equal opportunities for all. UPSTREAM INVESTMENTS provides practical tools to promote the importance of early childhood education.

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• Children who have had a high-quality early childhood education experience are more likely to be ready for school, improving their chances for early success, higher test scores and timely graduation.

• Children who have had a high-quality early childhood education experience are 70% less likely to be arrested for violent crimes and 50% less likely to need special education.

INVEST WISELY

• High-quality preschool returns $7 to the community for every $1 invested.

• For every preschool dollar spent, states are projected to recoup 36 – 77 cents in savings to the K-12 education system.

• High-quality early childhood education increases employability by 23%.

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• Early childhood education providers and advocates can promote family and community engagement to support children and youth in and out of school.

• Early childhood education providers can help coordinate efforts between school districts, early childhood education providers and community-based organizations.

• Early childhood education providers and advocates can encourage the business community to provide employees with access to early childhood education for their children, financial planning and health care benefits.

Early Childhood UPstreamINVESTMENTS

S O N O M A C O U N T Y

For more information and data sources, please see the Upstream Investments website at: www.upstreaminvestments.org

Choosing prevention over incarceration.By investing in evidence-based approaches that prevent criminal behavior before it starts, Sonoma County can reduce costs to our criminal justice system and community members.

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• For every preschool dollar spent, states are projected to recoup 50 – 84 cents in reduced costs to the criminal justice system.

• Children who receive a high-quality preschool experience are 70% less likely to be arrested for violent crimes, 50% less likely to be teen parents and 50% less likely to need special education.

• Research shows that Nurse Family Partnership, an evidence-based program implemented in Sonoma County, provides a 48% reduction in child abuse and neglect.

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• The costs of crime victimization to individuals includes costs related to lost productivity, physical and mental health, public safety, social services, property losses, and quality of life.

• Sonoma County residents pay more than $800 in federal, state and local taxes each year towards the criminal justice system.

• A year of Harvard tuition is far less than the cost of a year of incarceration.

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• Sonoma County’s criminal justice system can help to coordinate efforts between families, schools and County systems to intervene and prevent the conditions and factors that lead to criminal behavior.

Criminal Justice Systems


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Education Systems

Our schools need community support.

All Sonoma County residents deserve a high-quality education, but schools can’t shoulder this responsibility in isolation. UPSTREAM INVESTMENTS engages the entire community in supporting the healthy development of all children.

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• Schools and community organizations can target neighborhoods of high need to improve the quality of and access to early education.

• Level of education is the single biggest predictor of earnings for racial and ethnic groups in Sonoma County.

• In Sonoma County, 43% of all third-graders and less than one quarter of English Language Learners read proficiently in 3rd grade.

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• The Portfolio of Model Upstream Programs includes over twenty programs proven to build protective factors and promote school success, for example:

— AVANCE and Pasitos Playgroups utilize a bilingual two-generation approach to promote parent involvement and school readiness.

— Guiding Good Choices, a drug prevention program, has a Return on Investment (ROI) of $11 for every $1 invested.

— Project Learn’s academic enrichment program results in significantly higher grades and school attendance for at-risk students.

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• Build strong connections between school districts, the early childhood system and community-based organizations to support strong families and healthy development.

• Hold schools, community-based organizations and funders accountable to invest in programs proven to work.

• Advocate that local planning departments support place-based community schools to bring academics, health and social services, youth and community development, and parent engagement together.


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Health Systems

The critical link between health and education.

Through the promotion of programs that are prevention-focused, Sonoma County communities can eliminate disparities in health, education and income. UPSTREAM INVESTMENTS provides practical tools to help make Sonoma County the healthiest County in California.

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• Prevention programs that promote positive health outcomes can be implemented at any point in the life cycle, but research shows that the earlier it happens, the greater the long-term impact.

• People who live in neighborhoods with higher median educational attainment can expect to live longer lives.

• Programs like Nurse-Family Partnership have been shown to reduce state-verified rates of child abuse and neglect by 48%.

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• Poverty in Sonoma County is a strong predictor of poor health and education outcomes.

• The Portrait of Sonoma is a powerful tool we can use to understand inter-connected disparities and target programs to communities of high need.

• Upstream Investments can help organizations and funders select programs that work.

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• Reaching across sectors to align efforts with Upstream and Health Action will help us achieve the vision of being the healthiest county in California.

• Collective efforts across sectors can more effectively address the root causes of poverty than working in isolation.


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Business Community

A strong economy benefits everyone.

UPSTREAM INVESTMENTS provides practical tools that foster a dynamic workforce and thriving economy, while improving community conditions and supporting the growth of healthy families.

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• Poverty in Sonoma County is connected to poor health and education outcomes, decreasing employability and productivity.


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• Sonoma County residents pay more than $800 in federal, state and local taxes each year towards the criminal justice system. By preventing the root causes of criminal behavior, these dollars can be diverted to education to create a stronger local workforce.

• Upstream Investments provides resources for businesses to find out about local programs that have demonstrated effectiveness.

• Businesses can encourage employees to volunteer and donate to support effective programs.

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• Businesses can work with County departments and non-profits to identify and promote family-friendly workplace policies including:

— Flexible schedules

— Lactation-friendly workplaces

— Tax prep resources

— High-quality child care resources

— Ongoing employee training and education

• Businesses can sponsor the cost of an evaluation for a small non-profit to help them prove and improve program effectiveness.


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Wisely investing public dollars.As stewards of public dollars, Sonoma County Departments are committed to delivering high quality services to the community. UPSTREAM INVESTMENTS provides practical tools to guide local investments in services and programs that are prevention focused and proven to be effective.

INVEST EARLYSonoma County Departments are committed to integrating a focus on prevention into programs, services and administrative functions.

• Nurse Family Partnership, a home visiting program implemented by Sonoma County Department of Health Services, shows a return on investment of up to $5 per $1 dollar invested.

• Sonoma County departments already invest and implement many programs aimed at preventing child abuse, crime, obesity, substance abuse and many other social issues that result in downstream costs.

INVEST WISELYBy ensuring that County-funded programs and services use data to drive decision-making, the overall health and economic stability of our community will improve.

• Investing in evidence-based disease prevention programs would save Sonoma County residents up to $4.80 for every dollar invested.

• Children who have a preschool experience are 70% less likely to be arrested for violent crimes and 50% less likely to need special education.


INVEST TOGETHERCounty Departments and service contractors work together to integrate upstream principles in planning, contract management and procurement practices.

• Departments can work together with community-based organizations, schools and businesses to leverage solutions to county-wide problems.

• Departments can require contractors, whenever relevant, to demonstrate positive impacts for our community.

• Departments can promote replicability by ensuring County services are included on the Upstream Portfolio.

County Departments


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Funders


Making the most important investment.Every funding decision changes lives, but investments have the greatest impact when interventions are based on evidence and are prevention-focused. UPSTREAM INVESTMENTS provides practical tools to guide funding decisions.

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• Prevention can be implemented at any point during the life cycle, but research shows that the earlier it happens, the greater the long term impact.

• Local investments in high-quality early education are critical. In Sonoma County, educational achievement is the single biggest predictor of earnings, yet only 43% of Sonoma County third-graders currently read proficiently.

• Children receiving high-quality early care and education are 70% less likely to be arrested for violent crimes and 50% less likely to need special education.

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• Sonoma County funders can support programs that promote social and economic equity by targeting investments in neighborhoods where significant disparities exist. The Portrait of Sonoma informs place-based strategies.

• Funders can align with the principles of Upstream Investments by prioritizing programs that are proven to work.

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• Funders can increase the power of their investments by creating a common vision that promotes prevention, place-based investments and evidence-based decision making.

• Funders can incentivize organizations to work collectively to make community-wide change.

• Funders can help to build the capacity of community-based organizations by encouraging grantees to engage with Upstream Investments.

UPstreamINVESTMENTS


upstream investments champions toolkit: talking points

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