Childhaven and Pathwaves Washington: A New Partnership
Childhaven is honored to be a placement site for an innovative new public policy fellowship. Pathwaves Washington was created to build collective power to transform early childhood systems. The two-year fellowship creates pathways for leaders of color to hold decision-making roles in early childhood systems so they can equitably drive and shape policies that affect kids, families, and communities.
Fernanda Martinez Novoa, Childhaven’s new Public Policy Specialist, is one of 9 Pathwaves fellows in Washington state. Fernanda and Childhaven were selected by Pathwaves Washington in a competitive process earlier this year. Prior to her fellowship, Fernanda served as Family Navigator Project Lead at Childhaven where she was a founding member of Childhaven’s Healthcare Integration Team.
“In my experience as an advocate for families across inequitable systems, I know the systemic barriers that families with young children face. Public policy advocacy is an opportunity to materialize social demands. Community advocacy can achieve systemic changes that individual advocacy cannot. Being a Pathwaves Washington fellow at Childhaven gives me the opportunity to elevate the voice of the communities I have served and to help transform systems that have failed them for many years.”
- Fernanda Martinez Novoa, Public Policy Specialist, Childhaven
“I am honored to support Fernanda and the Pathwaves Washington fellowship at Childhaven. Fernanda brings a rich combination of early childhood experience, knowledge, and values to her new position. Childhaven is proud to be a Pathwaves Washington site and to contribute to making decision-making tables more diverse. Hosting a Pathwaves fellow will allow Childhaven to increase our system change capacity, sharpen our focus on racial equity in early learning policy, and contribute to career paths and professional development.”
- Jon Gould, Community Impact and Government Relations, Childhaven
