The West Steps
Colorado Children's Campaign
The West Steps explores the issues that matter for Colorado kids and families. The West Steps is a production of the Colorado Children's Campaign.
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Top 10 The West Steps Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The West Steps episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The West Steps for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The West Steps episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Solving our school funding formula
The West Steps
03/26/21 • 25 min
In a time when students’ needs are only increasing, school funding is more important than ever. Currently, the level of funding for schools in Colorado depends largely on property wealth. This is primarily an unintended result of how Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) amendment, which restricted the amount of revenue the state collected and spent, was implemented. Over time, this has created enormous inequities in the way our state collects and spends money in school districts. The pandemic has only widened these inequities and led to more budget cuts, making this a critical issue in our current legislative session.
Our school funding formula is undoubtedly complex. However, Leslie Colwell joins us in episode 7 to help answer all our questions. In this week’s discussion on The West Steps, Leslie simplifies the structural factors that have compounded over time to create our highly inequitable school funding system. Join us for an informative overview of the current issues facing school funding, how they came to be, and the proposed bill that could begin to correct this issue. Students deserve access to high quality education no matter where they live, making it especially important to continue advocating for bills such as this one in order to ensure all students benefit from state funding.
To read more about this bill and its journey through the legislature, click here.
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11/30/21 • 31 min
For parents of young children across Colorado, navigating the early childhood system is nothing short of exhausting. The fragmented programs that are often controlled by money and politics have repeatedly belittled the voices of concerned parents and providers for decades – perpetuating a system that fails kids in their most critical years of life. As the transition to the new state Department of Early Childhood continues, it is crucial that those involved in the implementation and planning process elevate community voice- especially the voice of parents and caregivers. In doing so, we can ensure the new state department lifts early childhood to the importance it deserves, fully allowing kids the chance to thrive.
Welcome back to our miniseries highlighting the transition to the new Department of Early Childhood. In episode 2, we are joined by Melissa Mares, Early Childhood Policy Fellow at the Colorado Children’s Campaign, and Janelle Jenkins, Parent Ambassador at Clayton Early Learning Center. Both Melissa and Janelle share their concerns, hopes, and personal experiences with the early care and education system in Colorado- providing first-hand insight toward their involvement in the transition process. As passionate advocates, Melissa and Janelle emphasize the need to transition to an early childhood system that prioritizes dignity, respect, and cares for parents and providers. By putting them first, we can ensure they are fully prepared to care for our kids in the best way possible.
As the transition to the new Department of Early Childhood continues, the Early Childhood Leadership Commission (ECLC) continues to host engagement opportunities that uplift community voices. Click here to learn more about how you can stay plugged into this exciting work.
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What is advocacy and why should you care?
The West Steps
03/05/21 • 17 min
Legislators often don’t hear from those most affected by the policies they choose to support. However, by sharing our personal stories, concerns, and experiences, we can be advocates for ourselves and our communities. As the pandemic continues to affect kids and families across the nation, it is more important than ever to speak up for the issues impacting those around us—and it doesn't’ take much to get started. A simple phone call to your legislator or email to an organization that works on issues you care about is all it takes to do your part on behalf of your community. So, what are you waiting for? Speak up today!
Jacy Montoya Price, Advocacy Director for the Colorado Children’s Campaign; and Christina Walker, Directory of Policy and Advocacy at Clayton Early Learning Center, are both strong believers in the importance of getting people’s voices heard. In episode 4 of The West Steps, we are joined by both Jacy and Christina in discussing the basics of advocacy, how to overcome intimidation when addressing policymakers, and what steps listeners can take to become advocates in their community. Interested in learning more? Join us for our 10th annual Speak up for Kids Day at the Capitol on March 18. Take the first step in becoming a more effective advocate for kids by registering here.
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The state of reproductive justice in Colorado
The West Steps
03/12/21 • 47 min
Kids exist in the context of their families, which is why it is especially important for our state and federal government to strive towards a well-funded, holistic, systems-based approach to health care and family planning access. The current patchwork system of family planning services in Colorado is not only inequitable and underfunded, but also demonstrates the negative impacts of racism in our country and the way it excludes women-- especially women of color and women with low incomes-- in accessing adequate health care. When we don’t create programs that are accessible for all, we fail our kids and families. The current issues our state faces in establishing efficient family planning access demands policymakers to take a human-centered approach in creating navigable paths to accessibility for all.
In episode 5 of The West Steps, we welcome three guests for a detailed explanation of Colorado’s current family planning system and the many inequities that continue to exist within it. Erin Miller, Jack Teter, and Karla Gonzales Garcia bring their knowledge and experiences to a conversation surrounding the lack of accessibility in family planning services and the potential solutions we could expect to see as a result of the current legislation. While family planning services are often viewed as complex issues, Erin, Jack, and Karla help bring listeners to a greater understanding of the ways in which these services should be established as an embodiment of reproductive justice supporting individuals in their right to bodily autonomy.
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03/18/22 • 40 min
The U.S is the only developed country with an increasing maternal mortality rate, and in Colorado, that rate has doubled since 2008. Additionally, longstanding discriminatory policies and practices have led to maternal mortality rates among birthing people of color and people using Medicaid that are significantly higher than the mortality rates seen amongst birthing people who are white, or using private insurance. These data make one thing clear: our current maternal health system is not only failing, but also leading to horrific, deadly outcomes. It is time that families, and especially birthing people, have access to systems that allow them agency over their birthing experiences, and high-quality care that helps their family thrive.
Welcome back to The West Steps! This week, we have a full house discussing maternal health in Colorado with our guests, Erin Miller, Vice President of Health Initiatives at the Colorado Children’s Campaign; Indra Lusero, founder and director of Elephant Circle; and Kayla Frawley, Manager of Policy and Advocacy at Clayton Early Learning Centers. Our guests provide an overview of the current maternal health landscape in Colorado, including the policies that are taking steps to improve it. They also discuss the rising rate of home and community births, emphasizing the need to make midwifery more integrated in Colorado's maternal health care system. By creating accessible, culturally responsive options for birth settings, the state can better ensure more equitable birth outcomes. In fact, birthing people across the state agree – systemic racism in birth settings is the number one issue that needs to be addressed by Colorado. This legislative session, HB22-128 – Cover All Coloradans -- hopes to take one step toward improving that. To learn more about this bill and how it would improve health care access for birthing people who are undocumented, click here.
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04/15/22 • 30 min
While many may view the governor signing a bill into law as the final step in the legislative process, this is not the case. In fact, a recently signed bill is barely halfway through the extensive journey a policy must take on its way to implementation. Why? After a bill is signed, the critical rulemaking phase beings. This process establishes in greater detail how the legislation will be implemented, ensuring that a law operates in the way in which it was originally intended. By advocating for equitable rulemaking, we can ensure policies have positive outcomes on those who face the most barriers to opportunity.
Season 4 of The West Steps continues! This week, we are once again featuring a first-ever topic on the podcast: the rulemaking process. Erin Miller, VP of Health Initiatives at the Colorado Children’s Campaign; Shoshi Preuss, Policy Analyst at Covering Kids and Families; and Bethany Pray, Legal Director at Colorado Center on Law and Policy join us for an overview of this critical component of policymaking. Our guests discuss what exactly rulemaking entails, how state agencies guide the process in different ways, and provide examples of recent rulemaking successes that have had a positive impact on Colorado kids and families. While this work may seem more complicated than engaging with the legislative process, advocacy is still just as important. To learn about how you can advocate for laws in the rulemaking process, visit the Colorado Secretary of State, where you can sign up to receive rules and notices of rulemaking.
Follow the Children's Campaign on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
How is Colorado working to improve school safety?
The West Steps
05/04/23 • 50 min
Recent incidents of gun violence in Colorado have once again called into light the need for a more comprehensive approach to school safety. By creating systems in our schools that address the root causes of violence, we can ultimately improve the long-term safety and social-emotional well-being of our students and teachers.
Episode 9 of The West Steps explores school safety with Dr. Beverly Kingston, Director and Senior Research Associate at the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence at University of Colorado Boulder; and Leslie Colwell, our Vice President of Youth Success Initiatives. Our guests detail effective strategies for building safer schools, share policy success and current research moving this work forward, and describe steps we can take to prevent violence in schools. They also emphasize the need to bring many perspectives to the table when it comes to making decisions about improving school climate. As researchers, advocates, and policymakers continue their work on school safety, it is critical that young people's voices inform their decision-making to create lasting solutions that best serve our communities.
Resources
- Kidsflash blog [Subscribe]
- Safe2Tell, 24/7 anonymous hotline to report safety concerns [Visit Safe2Tell]
- Children’s Campaign school climate policy work [Learn more]
- Averting Targeted School Violence: A U.S Secret Service Analysis of Plots against Schools [Read the report]
- Safe Communities Safe Schools Model [Read more]
Follow the Children's Campaign on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
The Braidwood ruling: What does it mean for Colorado?
The West Steps
04/20/23 • 27 min
For more than a decade, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has required that health insurance plans cover a wide range of preventive health care services at no cost to patients. However, access to some of those services is at risk after a federal court ruled last month that the ACA’s preventive services mandate is unconstitutional in a case called Braidwood v. Becerra.
The Children’s Campaign has been working alongside partners for years to help guarantee coverage of critical preventive services in Colorado statute. The Braidwood decision injects uncertainty into our health care system and makes this work even more essential.
On Episode 8 of The West Steps, we dive deeper into the Braidwood ruling and the impact it could have on Americans’ access to essential health services. We hear from Erin Miller, our Vice President of Health Initiatives; Jack Teter, Regional Director of Government Affairs at Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains; Isabel Cruz, Policy Director at Colorado Consumer Health Initiative; and Eric Waskowicsz, Policy Manager at United States of Care.
Our guests open the episode by sharing their favorite preventive service and describe how these services impact peoples’ lives. We then shift to a discussion of how the Braidwood ruling has the potential to impact Colorado kids and families if continuous work is not done to guarantee access to these services. We also discuss the recent passage of SB23-189, which will allow many Coloradans to maintain access to important preventive health services, helping to reduce health disparities and protecting families from unexpected, expensive bills.
Resources
- Learn more about SB23-189 [Visit our Capitol Updates page]
- Subscribe to our blog [KidsFlash]
- United States of Care resources on Braidwood: https://unitedstatesofcare.org/braidwood-v-becerra-resources/
- Preserving Coloradans’ access to preventive services amid challenges to the ACA - Colorado Children's Campaign (coloradokids.org)
Follow the Children's Campaign on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Family planning is future planning
The West Steps
04/26/19 • 20 min
One of the biggest public health successes in Colorado in the past decade has been the drastic drop in the teen pregnancy rate. We examine barriers that remain—and new obstacles at the federal level. Join Erin Miller, Vice President of Health Initiatives, and Samantha Espinoza, Policy Analyst, to explore how preventing unplanned pregnancies and ensuring teens have access to comprehensive sexual education result in better outcomes for kids.
Support the show (https://www.coloradokids.org/)
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FAQ
How many episodes does The West Steps have?
The West Steps currently has 102 episodes available.
What topics does The West Steps cover?
The podcast is about News, Colorado, Elections, Policy, Early Childhood, Podcasts, Kids, Health, Politics and Government.
What is the most popular episode on The West Steps?
The episode title 'Our individual actions to ensure Black Lives Matter' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on The West Steps?
The average episode length on The West Steps is 27 minutes.
How often are episodes of The West Steps released?
Episodes of The West Steps are typically released every 7 days, 1 hour.
When was the first episode of The West Steps?
The first episode of The West Steps was released on Jan 10, 2019.
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