About Us: Our Coalition & Mission
Our Mission: We are a community-driven coalition dedicated to securing a future where every child in our city has the support, safety, and resources they need to succeed from birth through adolescence.
A Community Response
Why This Coalition Exists:
2023
City Year Tulsa and the Opportunity Project brought together community stakeholders to address the expiration of federal ESSER dollars. This grew into a coalition of child advocates, philanthropic and nonprofit partners dedicated to sustainable, citywide expanded learning.
2024
In 2024, CAP Tulsa joined to address the high cost and lack of access to child care for families in Tulsa with children ages 0-4 , reinforcing alignment across early childhood and youth development. Following the election of Mayor Monroe Nichols and understanding the importance of values-aligned policy-makers, coalition members met with the Mayor in December 2024 to discuss our vision for long-term funding strategies for Tulsa’s children and youth and the return on investment it could bring to Tulsa.
2025
In 2025, Yes for Tulsa Children applied and was accepted into the Children’s Funding Project learning cohort and attended their summer Institute, to strengthen our approach through national best practices in data-driven policy design that includes public accountability. Lessons from successful campaigns emphasized positive framing, data-informed decision-making, disciplined messaging, and early planning to ensure exceptional execution and a strong foundation of public trust—principles that continue to guide this work.
2026
In January 2026, the coalition began to meet with Tulsa city councilors to share the history of our work and our vision for a long-term investment in Tulsa’s children related to childcare and out-of-school time. The coalition continues to grow every day as families, child care providers, youth-serving program providers, community leaders, and funders recognize the need to dedicate more resources to this pressing issue to build a better city for families across Tulsa.
Why We Must Act Now:
Without sustained investment:
Proven programs cannot scale.
Access remains uneven by zip code throughout Tulsa.
Gains in school attendance and academic performance are at risk.
Businesses are at risk of losing workers and suffering losses to their bottom line.
We cannot allow Tulsa to be a city where a child’s zipcode determines opportunity. Join us today!
The Proposed $30 Million Investment:
Child Care Access
Expanding high-quality care so families can work and children enter school ready to succeed.
Expanded Learning
Increasing access to safe before-school, afterschool, and summer programs.
Funding Stability
Moving away from short-term grants to provide consistent support for programs families rely on.
Data and Accountability
Ensuring every dollar is transparently tracked and focused on measurable results like literacy and attendance.