On Saturday, February 14, love for early childhood well-being was in the air! Literacy in Community’s (LINC) Chief of Strategic Initiatives, Emmanuel Novy, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Karen Rogel, and Chief of Advocacy & Community Mobilization, Albania Jimenez, joined collective voices in Albany for the 55th Annual Legislative Conference.
Organized by the The New York State Association of Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, and Asian Legislators (The Association), the 2026 conference theme was emphatic: “Legacy Forward: Transforming Tomorrow Together.” Together, is the operative word here, as cross-sector collaboration is essential in shaping children’s futures.
Collaboration was at the heart of our panel presentation. Our LINC leaders joined the Director of Literacy & Public Policy, Reach Out and Read, Kari Kurjiaka, the New York State Regional Director, ParentChild+, Andre Eaton, and the Director of Implementation at PlayReadVIP, Aide Custode for a dynamic panel entitled: Thrive by Five: Why Literacy Must Be Part of Universal Childcare and Every Early Childhood System. Assemblymember Manny Do Los Santos sponsored the panel.
“Parents and caregivers are absolutely the most powerful force in shaping their children’s futures. But they need support, resources, and connection to a community that values literacy. No single system can provide all of that alone.” Albania Jimenez, LINC’ Chief Of Advocacy & Community Mobilization
LINC meets families where they already are through mini-libraries—called Literacy Zones—in pharmacies, stores, and laundromats where families can pick up free books. They bring Reading Everywhere events to playgrounds and clinics and partner with healthcare systems so that literacy is part of well-child visits. LINC works with libraries to ensure families know about storytime programs and can access resources in their own languages.
However, these systems have to be coordinated to work. When a pediatrician talks to a parent about milestones and hands them a book, and then that parent sees a Literacy Zone at their local laundromat, and then they encounter a reading event at the playground—that’s
when the message lands. Literacy isn’t something that happens once a week at the library. It’s woven into the fabric of daily life and reinforced by every system that touches that family.
LINC offers age-specific workshop series—Baby Blocks for infants, Stepping Stones Academy for toddlers, Learn N’ Play for preschoolers—where parents learn specific strategies for building literacy skills. But just as important, they connect with other families and build a peer network. Those parents become the engine that spreads literacy throughout their neighborhoods when systems are coordinated and work together. Those systems set up children to thrive by five!
Join us in advocating for early literacy to be part of universal childcare and help us build an ecosystem that works for our families.
LINC is grateful to our sponsor, Manny De Los Santos, our co-panelists and all of our partners for the opportunity to present at the 55th Annual Legislative Caucus.
Visit our website, stand with us, and stay tuned as New York State elected officials enter budget season!