WBRE: Governor and First Lady Host Annual Easter Egg Event 2018
April 3, 2018 by Jayne Ann Bugda
HARRISBURG, DAUPHIN COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU-TV) Governor Tom Wolf and First Lady Frances Wolf today hosted pre-school classes from across the commonwealth at the annual Easter Egg Event at the Governor’s Residence.
The event was co-sponsored by Pre-K for PA, a non-partisan advocacy group that
supports the expansion of publicly funded pre-k.
In a prepared release from the PA Internet Services, the Governor said “Frances and I are proud that Pennsylvania delivers high-quality, publicly-funded pre-k to many
children, but over 106,000 kids remain unserved and a serious investment must be made to
continue toward the goal of providing access to all at-risk kids,”
In his 2018-19 budget, Governor Wolf proposed an additional $40 million to support high-quality
pre-k programs in the commonwealth. This expansion would mean access to publicly funded,
high-quality pre-k for 4,400 more kids.
Studies show that children who participate in high-quality pre-kindergarten perform better in
school, graduate at higher rates, and earn more throughout their working lives compared to
peers who do not have access to early learning programs. Additionally, children who were
previously enrolled in Pre-K Counts outperform their economically disadvantaged peers in third
grade math and reading.
Governor Wolf’s 2018-19 budget proposal contains education investments at all levels,
including:
• $100 million increase in Basic Education;
• $40 million increase in Pre-K Counts and Head Start;
• $20 million increase for Special Education;
• $15 million increase for the State System of Higher Education; and
• $10 million increase for Career and Technical Education
Watch the video here.
