Reading Eagle: Promoting the Value of Pre-kindergarten Programs in Chester County
By Holly Herman 3/19/16
NORTH COVENTRY TOWNSHIP – Pointing to colorful fish swimming in a bowl, smiling 5-year-old Gabe Feltman led an entourage of public officials on a tour of his pre-Kindergarten class in North Coventry Township Friday.
“Look at the fish,” Feltman said, to the group visiting the Warwick Cedarville Center to celebrate an increase of $30 million in state funding for pre-K in the partially adopted 2015-16 budget.
“I can tell you kids have a busy day,” state Sen. John C. Rafferty Jr. noted as Gabe showed him the toys and books in the center, which is part of the Owen J. Roberts School District.
Rafferty, a Montgomery County Republican who also serves portions of Berks and Chester counties, then took a seat to read a book to 10 students before they each cut a blue ribbon in the ceremony.
Before the ceremony, Steve Doser, deputy director of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, a nonpartisan crime prevention organization, ran a roundtable discussion on why more funding for pre-K is necessary.
“We are hopeful that our state policymakers will come together in a bipartisan fashion to find resources to expand access to pre-K in the 2016-17 budget,” Doser said.
“We are all focused on increasing funding for pre-K,” Rafferty responded, noting that the issue is bipartisan.
The 2015-16 partially enacted state budget already includes $127 million for pre-K.
As a result, Chester County received an additional $707,225 to provide spaces for 205 more children.
The allocation includes $170,000 to add 20 spots in pre-K programs in Warwick Child Care programs in North Coventry and East Coventry townships.
Berks County received an additional $743,775 to add 211 children, and Montgomery County received $564,000 for an additional 160 children.
Statewide, more than 120,000 eligible pre-schoolers are not receiving public funding.
Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan urged lawmakers to increase state aid for pre-school to reduce crime.
Hogan said that parental involvement is the key to doing well in life, noting that some children do not have parents to guide them.
Nevertheless, he said, children who go to pre-school are less likely to commit crimes.
“A review of Pennsylvania’s inmate population reveals that more than 50 percent of the inmates have not graduated from high school,” Hogan said.
The state offers two pre-K programs for low-income families.
One program, Pre-K Counts, provides funding to families under 300 percent of the poverty level, which is an annual income of $75,000.
The other program, Head Start Supplemental, provides pre-K to children in families under 120 precent of the federal poverty level, which would be an annual income of $30,000.
The federal poverty level for a family of four, is $24,300.
Read the full article here.
Daily Local: Chester County celebrates early education funding boost
3/18/16
WARWICK >> Chester County Pre-K got a boost in a big way Friday with $700,000 in new state funding and the attention of crime-fighting officials praising the value of early education.
Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan and state Sen. John Rafferty, R-44th Dist., were among the officials at Warwick Childcare Center, 16 East Cedarville Road, to cut a “Pre-K for PA” ribbon and open new classrooms.
In partnership with Owen J. Roberts School District, Warwick and other early learning providers throughout Chester County received more than $700,000 in new state funding so that 200 additional children can be given high-quality Pre-K. The grant was possible because of the inclusion of $30 million in additional pre-kindergarten funding agreed to in the partially enacted state budget.
With the new funding, Warwick Childcare Center was able to open ten more slots in one of its classrooms. In addition, they were able to expand bus routes to lower income housing complexes within the district so that children who are not be able to attend school simply because they can’t get there will no longer be denied early education.
The ongoing issues with passing a state budget created problems for early learning facilities before the recent release of state funds.
“The opening of new Pre-K council classrooms is definitely a step in the right direction but access to high quality early childhood education in Chester County still remains a challenge,” said Diana Neatrour, owner of Warwick Childcare Center.
Rafferty took time out before the ribbon cutting to address that very issue, noting that the need for expanding early childhood education has not been forgotten.
“It’s a tough year. We passed another budget Wednesday before we left Harrisburg that has an allotment for $30 million more for Pre-K. I don’t know what’s going to happen between the governor and the other chamber or what the governor’s going to do with the budget but certainly we’re going to keep trying to put more money into Pre-K,” said Rafferty.
According to Pre-K for PA, existing programs in Chester County only serve about 17 percent of eligible children.
And Chester County isn’t the only county in Pennsylvania to experience these problems. Montgomery County voiced similar concerns about making Pre-K education more available just before the school year started in August as well. Chester and Montgomery county officials have happily rallied behind the expansion of pre-kindergarten education, not only because of the educational benefits but because of early education’s effect on future crime rates.
“We start kids on paths early in life and that path will follow them the whole time,” said Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan in an interview after the ribbon cutting.
“If you start kids on the right path, then they’re going to do well in grade school, then they’re going to do well in high school, then they’re going to go to college and then they get a job. Other kids get on the wrong path. They don’t get that early education or an opportunity and they start falling behind. Already in grade school you can see kids who are falling behind and you know they’re going to have problems in high school. And then when they get to high school, they drop out. And once they drop out of high school, in today’s world, it’s going to be very hard to succeed.”
Read the full article here.
Philly.com: Op-ed: Back Kenney on Pre-K Funds
By David L. Cohen
March 1, 2016
Mayor Kenney will deliver his first budget address Thursday. If his remarks to the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce were any indication, he will propose many different investments that will be strongly supported by the business community, including strong economic development programs and a powerful commitment to education.
Most importantly, one of the centerpieces of the mayor’s address will almost certainly be a bold call for a major investment in pre-K programs in Philadelphia.
For a city plagued by a devastatingly high poverty rate (one of the highest in the nation), pre-K is not an option – it’s a critical equalizer. Neuroscientists attest that 80 to 90 percent of a child’s brain is developed in the first five years of life. Early education can enable our most vulnerable children to break the cycle of poverty by capitalizing on the tremendous learning potential of 3- and 4-year-olds during this critical time in their development.
For a city with a struggling public school system, pre-K is not an option – it’s a vital precursor to a quality education. Countless studies demonstrate the effectiveness of pre-K to reduce the need for special-education services, thus saving millions of dollars in costs. According to the city’s Pre-K Commission, the School District of Philadelphia could save $72 million over the length of a grade cohort’s K-12 school years if all children participated in pre-K.
Expanding access to pre-K is also indisputably linked to improving academic outcomes. According to the William Penn Foundation, the percentage of 4-year-olds with proficient academic and social skills more than tripled after participating in the state’s pre-K program. And children who participated in the Chicago Child-Parent Center were 29 percent more likely to graduate from high school.
Investments in pre-K are a powerful economic engine with impacts on par with transportation and infrastructure investments. A ReadyNation report frequently cited by the Economy League found that for every $1 spent on pre-K, at least $1.79 is generated in local spending.
It is not surprising, therefore, that in sharp contrast to the partisan political dysfunction that we see so much of today, there is a broad consensus – between Republicans and Democrats, between the business community and education advocates, and among local, state, and federal government officials – that pre-K is essential to turn around our schools and support our city and our economy for long-term growth.
You just don’t hear anyone questioning the need for or positive impact from pre-K. The only question I hear is how are we going to pay for it. And with all due respect, that’s simply the wrong question. The only question is how can we afford not to pay for it?
The Pre-K Commission has crystallized the financial need – the city needs to secure $60 million a year to expand pre-K to children who lack access. That is, unfortunately, not a sum of money that is easily available in the city budget. Therefore, in order to fund pre-K, it is a near certainty that the mayor will need to propose new revenue sources. If we in the business community are serious about our long-standing support for pre-K, we can’t be dismissive of proposals necessary to pay for it.
Philadelphia has the opportunity to implement a policy that can grow jobs and businesses, attract and retain talented workers, and help public education. This is what many of us in the business community have been begging for, so we cannot be silent now. We need to embrace Mayor Kenney’s call to action, partner with him, and wholeheartedly support pre-K and the means to fund it. Together, we can provide a great opportunity for our city’s children – and for all of us.
David L. Cohen is senior executive vice president of Comcast Corp. and is a member of the Executive Leadership Council for Pre-K for PA (www.prekforpa.org). David_Cohen@Comcast.com
Read the op-ed here.
WESA: Investing in Early Childhood Education Means Playing the Long Game
By LIZ REID • MAR 1, 2016
Last May, Governor Tom Wolf held a news conference in front of the Camp Hill state prison in Cumberland County.
He was joined by Corrections Secretary John Wetzel and a handful of district attorneys, all pushing for a $120 million funding increase — not for prisons — but for preschool.
“These are the first steps to what I have as a four-year goal to fully fund early childhood education,” Wolf said.
The press conference was timed not only to coincide with that year’s budget negotiations, but also with the release of a report from the nonprofit advocacy group Fight Crime Invest In Kids.
The report presented data from across the country to make the case that putting more kids in pre-K now would mean fewer adults in prison later.
“Pre-K sets kids up to be at level by grade 3,” Wetzel said. “Those who aren’t reading at level by grade 3 are more likely to drop out. Those who are more likely to drop out are more likely to be incarcerated. So that’s kind of a cascade effect.”
But that budget never passed. The partial budget Wolf signed in December increased pre-K funding by about $30 million.
Cara Ciminillo, executive director of the Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children, said the children whose names rest on stalled waiting lists will never get those valuable developmental months and years back.
“Ninety percent of your brain is developed by the time you’re 5 years old,” she said. “So it sort of lays the foundation for the rest of your life.”
For many families, there aren’t enough pre-K slots in their communities, and they can’t afford to look into private education. Because access to high quality early learning experiences is so dependent on income, Ciminillo said it can exacerbate disparities created by economic inequality.
It’s an issue on the minds of educators and parents alike. At a December meeting of Pittsburgh City Council, the (later successful) bill to create the Office of Early Childhood drew nearly an hour of public comment.
Jessica Conway of Squirrel Hill spoke at the meeting. As an early childhood educator and mom to two young boys, she told council menters she’s not sure she can afford to work to anymore.
“At our center, I think if I were not able to return to work, I would be the third teacher in three years who was not able to return to work because of the advent of a second child,” she said. “You would essentially be giving back your entire paycheck in order to be able to go to work 40 hours a week.”
Conway makes about $29,000 a year, and since her husband is pursuing a Ph.D. in English at the University of Pittsburgh, she is the breadwinner in the family. After paying tuition for both her sons, even with her employee discount, she would end up with about $50 extra a week.
“I really think that that’s a shame, and I think that across the country we’re probably losing a lot of really good, really dedicated teachers in the early childhood teaching field … because they wanted to have their own children,” she said. “That just does not compute for me.”
For other families, paying for childcare is just one issue.
Aseia Glover laughs as she lists off the fast food and fast casual restaurants she’s worked at: Wendy’s, Arby’s, Burger King, Panera Bread and others.
“I’ve worked everywhere,” she said, usually for minimum wage.
Glover’s daughter Sonja is 18 months old, and she is 9 months pregnant with her second baby girl.
She said working in food service sometimes means early morning shifts and catching the bus at 4 a.m. At her last job, she would take Sonja to a relative’s house the night before.
“(I would) drop her off around 9 or 10 at night, go get her at 5 in the evening, and then only get to spend like four hours with my daughter. And then I’ve got to take her back to the babysitter,” she said. “Most of the time she’ll cry, and I’m like, ‘Aww baby, I’m not abandoning you. I’ve got to make a living.’”
As a low-wage worker, Glover does qualify for the state’s childcare subsidy program, but she said even with the subsidy she would still have to pay $100 a week, about half of her take-home pay.
So instead, she cobbles together care. Sonja’s dad watches her when he’s not at work. Glover’s grandmother and brother pitch in, too. But she worries that Sonja is not getting the kind of education and socialization opportunities that will help her be successful in school and later in life.
“I think about it every day,” Glover said. “That’s why each and every day I fight harder and harder and harder, and it seems like I’m getting somewhere, but it’s just hard.”
Read the full article here.
Bucks County Courier Times: Op-ed: Commitment to Pre-k Education Pays Big Dividends
By JAMIE HADDON and WILLIAM E. HARNER
February 26, 2016
“It gets late early out there.”
Yogi Berra said it about the conditions at Yankee Stadium, but it sure sounds like he was talking about early childhood education.
At United Way of Bucks County, we work to advance the quality of early education and provide hundreds of prekindergarten scholarships through your generous contributions. UW Bucks has a long history of investing in early learning and school readiness. It is one of our top priorities. In 2016, we are convening a panel to help guide and deepen our commitment to this area.
At Quakertown Community School District, our board demonstrated its commitment to early childhood education — and a great start for our community’s children — by offering full-day kindergarten to all students who are not “ready to learn” at grade level. Now, through the Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts grant, Quakertown is partnering with LifeSpan School and Day Care to give low- and moderate-income children access to a high quality, full-day, preschool program at no cost to their families.
We invest for one reason: It “gets late early.” By age 5, 90 percent of a child’s brain is developed. It is a small window of opportunity with huge possibilities and potential, but it closes quickly. We also know high-quality pre-K is not accessible to many of our young learners who need it. Bucks County is home to 14,000 3- and 4-year-olds. Only a small fraction of these children are enrolled in publicly funded pre-K programs. Many of those missing out are those at greatest risk of academic failure. In fact, last year, 4,446 kids in Bucks County lacked access to a publicly funded, high-quality pre-K program.
The return on investment is significant. We know from research (and from the results of our practice) that high-quality pre-K is one of the best investments we can make to strengthen our community and save taxpayers in the long term. It significantly improves school readiness and increases the likelihood of high school graduation. Long term, this investment in early childhood education gives us better educated citizens — adults who are ready to be contributors to Bucks County.
In fact, every dollar spent on pre-K saves $7 in remediation and other school-related costs. It’s a win-win.
Pennsylvania has taken its eye off the ball when it comes to the benefits of pre-K. Five years ago, the state reduced its funding of pre-K by 50 percent. There is still a significant funding gap. In the meantime, the United Way and other Bucks County community-based organizations have stepped up to attempt to close the gap. However, local support and effort alone is not enough to make up the difference. We need help.
Read the full op-ed here.
Citizens Voice: LTE: Policy Makers Need to Expand Pre-K Services
February 25, 2016
It was disappointing to read that 80 percent of Luzerne County’s 3- and 4-year old children lack access to a high quality pre-K (Jan. 20). The article summarized the school readiness and cost savings benefits associated with further investments in pre-K, but it neglected to mention the impact on future national security.
The sad reality is that more than 70 percent of Pennsylvania’s young people cannot enlist in the Armed Forces. Inadequate education, criminal record and/or obesity are the principal disqualifiers.
For years, military leaders associated with the national security nonprofit organization Mission: Readiness have called for greater access to pre-K to help reverse this trend and ensure that our next generation has the skills, health and character needed to succeed both in military service and our civilian workforce.
As part of the 2016-17 state budget, our state policy makers have the opportunity to expand pre-K services to an additional 14,000 at-risk children. Investing in this next generation that one day will fill the ranks of our military and civilian workforce must be a priority.
Joseph F. Perugino
Kingston
