When Nina Perez, early learning national director and Florida director at MomsRising, first imagined a parent-led steering committee in Florida, she had limited funding, little state infrastructure and no clear roadmap for what it could become. What she did have were mothers who were ready to lead, and a belief that, together, they could reshape advocacy from the inside out.
“Parents have always had the answers,” Perez said. “What they haven’t had is the time, support or access to decision-making spaces. That’s why I don’t move on anything in Florida without them. They’re not here to just give input, they’re shaping the work. They’re leading it.”
That belief became practice when Voices for Healthy Kids awarded a grant to MomsRising, giving Perez the space to turn a philosophy into a structure. Instead of a typical advisory group, she established the MomsRising Florida Steering Committee, a small, intentional circle of seven mothers from across the state who not only weigh in on Florida campaigns but also co-govern them. They vote on strategy, approve rapid-response actions and co-create messaging, shoulder to shoulder with Perez.
“What stands out isn’t just that MomsRising was engaging parents, it is how deeply they trust them with real power,” said Ben Schmauss, national senior advocacy consultant for Voices for Healthy Kids. “You don’t often see parents not only sharing their stories, but shaping strategy, voting on decisions and leading campaigns. That kind of capacity-building happens because MomsRising decided to build with parents, not for them.”
And when parents lead, change follows. In Jacksonville one mother attended a MomsRising advocacy training and learned that cities can establish their own child care commissions. A few months later, she connected with her mayor’s office; not as a lobbyist, but as a mom living the crisis every day. The city agreed to launch a child care task force. There were no headlines, no podiums – just a mother, an idea and a structure that trusted her enough to pursue it.
When Florida was named in a federal lawsuit alleging schools were failing to uphold students’ rights under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (which guarantees accommodations for students with disabilities) Perez brought the issue to the steering committee. A kindergarten teacher in the group shifted the entire conversation.
“She said, ‘If schools don’t have a child’s 504 plan, a kid with allergies or anemia could die. This is about safety,’” Perez recalled. “That changed everything.” Together, they rewrote outreach that became one of MomsRising’s most effective petitions of the year, demonstrating again the power of a parent.
Parents now co-lead delegation meeting trainings. They are part of legislative meetings. They organize local education events and mobilize other families in their own cities.
“This isn’t a ladder of engagement,” Perez said. “It’s co-governance. Parents are my co-conspirators.”
Perez explained none of this would have been possible without early funding. Before receiving the Voices for Healthy Kids grant, Perez lacked the budget to reimburse parents for their time, travel or child care, as well as the capacity to establish a leadership structure built on trust.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do it this year without the grant, full stop,” she said. “It gave me the space to build the steering committee, to take parents to Tallahassee, to reimburse their time. Without it, this wouldn’t exist.”
But money wasn’t the point, it was what it allowed. Time. Trust. Shared power. Real infrastructure.
“What MomsRising built in Florida is what happens when parents aren’t just invited to the table, they’re trusted to lead it,” said Lori Fresina, vice president and executive director of Voices for Healthy Kids. “Our role was to make sure resources weren’t the barrier. They did the rest.”
Perez says what matters most isn’t a single policy win, it’s the shift in who gets to lead.
“The power of our movement is relationships,” she said. “That’s what makes MomsRising powerful. “It’s the mom who picks up your kids when you can’t. It’s neighbors taking care of each other. Those same relationships are what make MomsRising powerful. We’re not just building policy, we’re building each other. And that has a lasting impact.”
To see more examples of how Voices for Healthy Kids invests in community-led change, you can explore the grant opportunities we’re currently funding.