Wilkes-Barre Citizens’ Voice: Study: Pre-K a fiscal boon in region
“A $40 million investment in pre-kindergarten education would generate $72 million in new spending in the Northeastern Pennsylvania economy, according to a study released Friday.
The analysis, released by the statewide Pre-K for PA campaign and conducted by ReadyNation/America’s Edge, calculates how an expansion of early education in the Commonwealth generates business and jobs and found that statewide, every dollar Pennsylvania invests in pre-k programs generates $1.79 in new spending.
In Northeastern Pennsylvania, a $40 million investment would give nearly 6,400 more 3- and 4-year-old children access to publicly funded, high-quality education. The study defines Northeastern Pennsylvania as Lackawanna, Luzerne and Wyoming counties. The $40 million would generate $72 million in spending, including $32 million outside the early education sector. The spending would include $7 million in services, $5 million in real estate and construction, $6 million in insurance and finance and $4 million in retail and wholesale trade. Statewide, about $1 billion is needed annually to fund pre-k for about 170,800 children who do not currently have access.”
Read the full story here.
The Times Herald: Norristown school board passes resolution opposing charter school bill
“The school board also unanimously approved a resolution in support of Pre-K for PA, a coalition of Pennsylvania organizations and individuals campaigning to bring access to high-quality early education to all of Pennsylvania’s three- and four-year-olds.
Anne Gemmell, Pre-K for PA field director, gave a presentation to the school board at the March 24 school board meeting on the benefits of the district’s support for early childhood education for Pennsylvania’s 3 and 4 year olds.
“We do believe when you provide high quality support for young ones, it makes a great difference,” Gemmell said referencing data that shows children who receive high-quality early care are more prepared for their academic careers and eventually contribute to the state’s economy. “We’re asking school boards to throw their clout behind this issue.””
Read the full story here.
Pocono Record: Invest in success with quality preschool
Letter to the Editor from Joan Benso, CEO of Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children:
“If we could invest tax dollars in a way that reduces public-school costs, increases graduation rates, lowers spending on crime and social services, and helps build a more competitive workforce with stronger earning power, would you get behind it?
That investment opportunity already exists in Monroe County in the form of high-quality pre-kindergarten, but we aren’t doing enough to take full advantage of it — and that means lost savings for taxpayers and missed opportunities for kids.
Research shows children who attend high-quality pre-K head to kindergarten better prepared to learn. They tend to perform better academically and need fewer special education and remedial learning services. As a result, taxpayers and society benefit in all those ways I mentioned earlier.”
Read the full letter here.
Central Penn Business Journal: Study: Expanding pre-K in Pa. could generate $800M in spending
“Statewide, the study says, investing about $700 million in expanding pre-K to all children whose families earn less than 300 percent of the federal poverty level would reach more than 88,000 children, generate an additional $550 million in total new economic activity in Pennsylvania businesses and create more than 19,000 new jobs, including 3,800 jobs outside the early-learning sector.
Expanding access to all children regardless of income, the report says, would require an estimated additional public investment of $326 million to enroll another 80,000 children, and would support an additional $255 million in spending and 8,900 jobs, including more than 1,700 outside the early-learning sector.
In the Lancaster-York region, the study says, a $90 million investment would generate $161 million in new spending, including $71 million outside of the early education sector — $16 million in services, $12 million in real estate and construction, $13 million in insurance and finance, and $9 million in retail and wholesale trade.”
Read the full story here.
Lancaster Online: Report predicts economic benefits to expanding Pre-K
“Advocates for early childhood education usually point to its economic benefits down the road: Children who enter school ready to learn end up as more productive, higher earning adults.
A study released last week makes a different case: Early childhood education is an effective economic stimulus in real time.
Expanding pre-kindergarten education in Pennsylvania would create “a significant, immediate economic boost for local businesses,” said the report authored by ReadyNation/America’s Edge on behalf of the Pre-K for PA campaign.”
Read the full story here.
