Eamonn Scanlon - From Local Action to Statewide Impact for Children's Rights

Don’t expect transparency. That’s what you have to dig for.” – Eamonn Scanlon, The Children's Agenda
What happens when over 140,000 students are suspended from school each year in New York? When families can’t get basic developmental services until it’s too late? When the people in power act like the system is working just fine? This week on Finding Common Ground, Heather and Steve are joined by Eamonn Scanlon from The Children’s Agenda to expose the cracks in the foundation of our education and care systems—and what we can do to fix them.

 🎧 In this episode:

• Real Power: Learn how building coalitions and reshaping narratives are just as critical as passing legislation.

• Suspensions That Solve Nothing: Hear why blanket school suspensions don’t change behavior—and what does.

• A Broken Early Intervention System: NY is dead last in timely early intervention services. Eamonn breaks down how that failure starts before kids even enter the school system.

• From Foster Care to the Classroom: Steve shares his personal experience with therapeutic foster care—and how trauma-informed systems are still more buzzword than reality.

• No Support? No Success. Heather explains how gaps in services impact families like hers—where Early Intervention delays and suspension risks aren’t just stats—they’re real life.

💬 Must-Hear Quotes:

•  “Suspensions don’t work. We need discipline that actually changes behavior.” — Eamonn Scanlon [24:56]

• “The early intervention system? It’s disconnected. And that’s a massive problem.” — Eamonn Scanlon [32:37]

• “If we had 100,000 people in Albany tomorrow? All of this melts away.” — Eamonn Scanlon [43:09]

• “If they admit the problem, they have to fix the problem.” — Eamonn Scanlon [13:26]

 Why You Need to Listen: If you care about educational equity, disability rights, or just making systems actually work for kids and families, this episode is a rallying cry.

We’re not here to complain—we’re here to organize, act, and make sure no family is left to navigate broken systems alone.
👉 Tune in now and learn how you can become part of the movement: Kids Can’t Wait and Solutions Not Suspensions


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