WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the nation navigates a complex and increasingly fraught political landscape, the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) is preparing to host a major national gathering focused entirely on the well-being, growth, and protection of the country’s 73 million children and youth. In November 2026, the prominent national youth advocacy organization will convene the American Youth Policy Forum in Washington, D.C., bringing together policymakers, researchers, community leaders, and advocates from across the United States to confront what organizers describe as an alarming regression in foundational supports for young people.
The upcoming forum, titled “Doing Our First Works Over: The New State of America’s Children,” is scheduled to take place on November 4 and 5, 2026, at the Blackburn University Center located on the campus of Howard University. Coming immediately on the heels of the 2026 midterm elections, the event is designed to serve as both a critical reflection point and a strategic launching pad for the future of child advocacy in America. Organizers emphasize that the gathering comes at a crucial historical moment when harmful political decisions at various levels of government are directly threatening the stability, health, and economic security of children and youth nationwide.
According to the Children’s Defense Fund, the forum will address a wide array of interconnected systemic crises. Keynote speeches and panel discussions will delve deeply into the current state of public education and public health systems, the systematic weakening of the federal Department of Education, and the mounting political and budgetary attacks on essential safety net programs. Programs such as Head Start, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and Medicaid have long served as critical bulwarks against poverty and destitution. However, recent policy shifts and funding battles have severely strained these systems, exacerbating challenges related to food insecurity, pediatric health, and early childhood support across diverse communities.
A central highlight of the two-day event will be the official release of the highly anticipated 2026 State of America’s Children® Report. This comprehensive publication provides an exhaustive overview of the status of children across the United States, utilizing rigorous data to measure well-being across a broad spectrum of indicators. The report examines child population trends, national child poverty rates, growing income and wealth inequality, the crisis of housing instability and youth homelessness, child hunger and nutrition, pediatric and adolescent health metrics, early childhood education availability, the youth justice system, and the devastating impact of gun violence on American youth. For decades, the report has served as an indispensable resource for lawmakers, researchers, and grassroots advocates striving to build policies rooted in equity and justice.
The urgency of the moment was underscored by Brittany Packnett Cunningham, Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for the Children’s Defense Fund. She noted that while elections capture the nation’s attention on November 3, the daily struggle and the essential labor of protecting and uplifting young people must continue unabated long after the ballots are cast and counted.
“Together, we’ll examine what the 2026 election results mean for children and youth, explore the policy issues shaping their health, education, economic mobility, and well-being, and identify strategies for moving from uncertainty to action,” Packnett Cunningham stated. She emphasized that the discussions held during the forum will directly inform and guide future advocacy campaigns and legislative priorities designed to secure a better reality for children across the country.
Nick Vucic, National Director of Public Affairs for CDF, echoed these sentiments, pointing to the stark reality that today’s political climate requires unprecedented vigilance and coordination. He stressed that ensuring every child is safe, healthy, and supported is not merely a policy preference but an urgent moral and civic obligation.
“At CDF, we work to ensure every child is safe and supported,” Vucic said. “This means holding our nation’s leaders accountable so their policies and programs truly serve young people. We cannot allow decades of progress to be undone. Therefore, we must come together to shape policies that protect children’s futures and improve their daily lives. We plan to do just that at the 2026 American Youth Policy Forum, Powered by CDF.”
The forum will feature a distinguished roster of national experts, researchers, and organizational leaders who are at the forefront of policy discussions regarding child welfare, health equity, economic justice, and public policy. Featured speakers scheduled to address attendees include Rev. Leonard Burton, President and CEO of the Center for the Study of Social Policy; Annie Donovan, President and CEO of the Raza Development Fund; Dr. Daniel Eisenburg, Professor of Health Policy and Management at the University of California, Los Angeles, and co-author of Investing in Children’s Mental Health; and Bruce Lesley, President of First Focus on Children.
Additional featured speakers include Brittany Packnett Cunningham of the Children’s Defense Fund; Sharon Parrott, President of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities; Dr. Ramesh Raghavan, Professor of Social Work at New York University; Dr. Heidi Shierholz, President of the Economic Policy Institute; and Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson, President and CEO of the Children’s Defense Fund. These leaders will bring diverse perspectives from economics, public health, social work, and civil rights advocacy to the forefront of the conversation.
Founded in 1973, the Children’s Defense Fund has spent more than half a century working to realize a vision of the United States where marginalized children are able to flourish, where political and community leaders prioritize their health and well-being, and where local communities possess the resources and power necessary to ensure young people thrive. As the only national, multi-issue advocacy organization operating directly at the intersection of child well-being and racial justice, CDF champions the needs of America’s most diverse generation—the 73 million children and youth under the age of 18, alongside 30 million young adults under the age of 25.
Through grassroots organizing rooted deeply in marginalized communities, CDF builds sustained power for child-centered public policy that is guided by principles of racial equity and the authentic lived experiences of youth. The organization is also widely recognized for its transformative CDF Freedom Schools® program, which currently operates in nearly 100 cities spread across 30 states and U.S. territories, offering academic enrichment, character building, and leadership development to children during the summer months and beyond.
As the date for the 2026 American Youth Policy Forum approaches, organizers expect hundreds of advocates, youth leaders, and policy experts to converge on Washington, D.C., united by a shared determination to reverse harmful trends, protect the social safety net, and forge an ambitious, equity-driven agenda for the nation’s youngest generation.
