First Focus

From Awareness to Action First Focus on Children’s comprehensive advocacy strategy works at each of the four stages of the policy change process: Raise Awareness — First Focus conducts issue analysis and research to understand the problems kids face. Our Capitol Hill briefings and one-on-one meetings inform policymakers directly. And we raise awareness through traditional media coverage and direct citizen engagement on social media. Develop Policy Solutions — First Focus translates research into practical policies and capitalize on or create windows of opportunity, so we are ready with the right solution at the right time. Build Will — First Focus builds policymakers’ will to act by taking our message to them directly. We also engage partners, raise up local voices, commission opinion research, share communications best-practices, generate buzz on social media and shine a spotlight through traditional media. Take Action — When the time comes to choose, First Focus makes it easier to choose solutions that work for kids. That means direct advocacy, mobilizing partners and citizen advocates, social media and traditional media, and publicly recognizing policymakers who stand up for kids. Breaking Down Advocacy Silos We are not education advocates, or health care advocates, or child welfare or housing or tax advocates. First Focus moves beyond individual issues to serve a more important role: children’s advocates. The Results: Real Gains for Children When the federal government makes the right choices, children win big. Today, 35 million kids get the health care they need because of Medicaid and the federal Children’s Health Insurance Program. The federal Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit lift five million children out of poverty. And the Affordable Care Act promises further gains on both health and poverty.