New Polls Show Strong Support for High-Quality Pre-K
Surveys indicate likely PA voters continue to prioritize early learning opportunities
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With Election Day fast approaching, two recent statewide polls of likely Pennsylvania voters demonstrate consistent and strong support for high-quality pre-kindergarten programming and voter prioritization for pre-k has grown. The polls are consistent with a previously released survey that also shows increased voter support for pre-k in the span of just one year.
The two new polls, conducted separately by Pennsylvania-based polling firms Terry Madonna Opinion Research* and Susquehanna Polling & Research (SP&R), show that growing majorities favor access to high-quality pre-k for every 3- and 4-year old child in the Commonwealth. According to the polling:
- 63 percent consider pre-k a top or high priority (Terry Madonna Opinion Research, September 2014)
- 58 percent consider pre-k a high or medium priority (SP&R, October 2014)
“With just 15 days until Election Day, these latest poll results further cement the sentiment among Pennsylvania voters that pre-k is a top priority when they head to the voting booth in November,” said Steve Wray, executive director of the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia, a Pre-K for PA coalition member. “Each new poll conducted on the topic shows a strong majority of voters wanting the next Pennsylvania governor to improve access to pre-k.”
Consistent with other recent poll results, voters continue to prioritize pre-k as a top concern. An August 2014 Lake/Bellwether survey found that 58% of likely voters consider pre-k a top priority, an increase from 50% in December 2013. The two Lake/Bellwether polls were commissioned by Pre-K for PA and used the same methodology.
A summary of the poll findings can be viewed on Pre-K for PA’s website at www.prekforpa.org/priority.
Pre-K for PA is an issue campaign supported by thousands of individuals and organizations across Pennsylvania who believe that investing in our children is the right choice and an urgent necessity. Our vision is that every 3- and 4-year-old in Pennsylvania will have access to high-quality pre-k. While the campaign neither endorses nor opposes candidates, it advocates on behalf of this vision for Pennsylvania’s children, schools and communities.
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School boards in Neshaminy (Bucks County, October 28, 2014) and Cheltenham (Montgomery County, October 14, 2014) have issued resolutions endorsing expanded investment in high-quality pre-k. To read the resolutions, visit our “Educators for Pre-K” page.
Neshaminy School Board Passes Resolution Calling for High-Quality Pre-K
Momentum grows as another area school board joins the cause in support of state-funded early learning policies
Philadelphia, PA (Oct. 29 2014) – The Board of Directors of the Neshaminy School District yesterday enacted a resolution calling for the adoption of state-funded policies to ensure that every 3- and 4-year-old in Pennsylvania can access high-quality early education. Neshaminy is the latest in a series of local school districts that have joined the issue campaign Pre-K for PA in calling on Pennsylvania’s elected officials and candidates for office to support increased access to high-quality pre-k.
The resolution reflects the recognition that children who attend quality pre-k programs are far better prepared to enter school ready to learn and take full advantage of the benefits of classroom learning. It also recognizes that many families in Neshaminy – and across the Commonwealth – do not have access to, or cannot afford quality pre-k. In fact, over 10,000 children ages 3 and 4 in Bucks County do not have access to high-quality, publicly-funded early education. Investment in quality early learning programs is crucial to ensure that our children can have the best chance possible to succeed in school and beyond.
“As a mom, educator, and taxpayer, I am grateful that our School Board is adopting a resolution in support of universal high-quality pre-k,” said Neshaminy School District Literacy Coordinator Colleen Stahl. “Currently, too many of our youngsters are entering school under-prepared, without the social, listening, speaking, and language skills that quality early education provides. Children only have one chance to get on target for lifelong academic success – and this is a step in the right direction for Neshaminy.”
The resolution highlights the benefits of high-quality pre-k programs, which include: improved early literacy, language, math, social and emotional skills; a reduction in special education placements and grade repetition; increased rates of high school graduation and college enrollment; and decreased high school dropout and crime rates.
For a copy of the full resolution, as well as resolutions recently passed by other Pennsylvania school districts, visit Pre-K for PA’s “Supers for Pre-K” webpage here.
Pre-K for PA is an issue campaign supported by individuals and organizations across Pennsylvania who believe that investing in our children is the right choice and an urgent necessity. Our vision is that every 3- and 4-year-old in Pennsylvania will have access to high-quality pre-k. We will not endorse nor oppose candidates, but rather we will advocate on behalf of this vision for Pennsylvania’s children, schools and communities.
Pre-K for PA’s new issue brief — developed by the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia — focuses on the impact that high-quality pre-k has on K-12 education. Schools spend significant time and money helping children who arrive in kindergarten behind to catch up. By getting children ready for school, academically and socially, pre-k can reduce those costs and increase student success.
This is a particularly important topic given Pennsylvania’s current efforts to ensure adequate and equitable funding for public education. While there are no simple solutions to the challenges Pennsylvania faces, this brief explores how pre-k benefits K-12 systems and improves outcomes for children.
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Montgomery County Leaders Visit Collegeville Play & Learn to Endorse Pre-K Investment
Event organized by Fight Crime: Invest in Kids highlights endorsement of Pre-K for PA by Montgomery County Chiefs of Police Association
Media Coverage
As part of the Pre-K for PA campaign, Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman, Police Chiefs William Albany (Limerick) and David Duffy (Upper Gwynedd), along with State Senator John Rafferty and State Representatives Mike Vereb and Todd Stephens, visited the Collegeville Play & Learn center on Thursday, October 9 to discuss the value of early learning and to read to children in this high-quality pre-k program.
The law enforcement leaders provided information showing that investing in high-quality early education in Pennsylvania can help at-risk children succeed, reduce special education costs, significantly reduce the likelihood that they will commit crimes, and save taxpayer dollars through reduced prison and other costs. Pennsylvania’s 2014-15 state budget grew funding for Pre-K Counts by $10 million providing services to almost 1,600 additional children statewide. Despite this increase, 66 percent of Montco’s approximately 19,320 3- and 4-year-old children do not have access to high-quality pre-k.
The statewide anti-crime organization Fight Crime: Invest in Kids is sponsoring the event. The 200 Pennsylvania district attorneys, police chiefs, and sheriffs who are members of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids are urging greater access to high-quality pre-k for more of Pennsylvania’s children as an essential crime prevention investment. The organization is a founding partner of the Pre-K for PA campaign, the goal of which is to ensure that all 3- and 4-year-old children in Pennsylvania have access to high-quality pre-k. Ms. Ferman serves on the Executive Leadership Council of the Pre-K for PA Campaign. Chief Albany, representing the Montgomery County Chiefs of Police Association, officially announced the Association’s endorsement of the campaign.
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| Pre-k 3 teacher Desiree Sedgwick, MontCo DA Risa Ferman, Limerick Police Chief William Albany, Rep. Mike Vereb |
Pre-k 4 teacher Christina Doty, Upper Gwynedd Police Chief David Duffy, Rep. Todd Stephens, Pre-k 4 teacher Natasha McManus |
