PennLive: Governor Wolf hosts Easter Egg hunt for pre-k students
April 17, 2017 by Mark Pynes
Under a bright blue sky, Gov. Tom Wolf and first lady Frances Wolf hosted several dozen prekindergarten students and their families on the lawn of the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg for an Easter egg hunt Monday.
“Frances and I are excited to host Harrisburg-area preschoolers at the Governor’s Residence today,” Wolf said.
“I (have) called for a state budget that includes an increase of $75 million for pre-K, which will allow for more than 8,400 additional children to enroll in Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts and the Head Start supplemental assistance programs,” he said.
Read the article and see all the photos here.
LancasterOnline: Sturla, Cutler receive 2017 Pre-K Champion awards for efforts supporting early childhood education investments
April 18, 2017 by Jonas Fortune
Two Pennsylvania lawmakers from Lancaster County were honored Monday for their support to expand investment in early childhood education across the state.
Pre-K for PA, a statewide campaign to bolster early childhood education, honored Democratic state Rep. Mike Sturla and Republican state Rep. Bryan Cutler with its 2017 Pre-K Champion award at an event at Lancaster Recreation Commission.
Pre-kindergarten education focuses on the developmentally sensitive ages of 3 and 4 as children prepare socially and cognitively for life and school, said Bruce Clash, state director of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids and a Pre-K for PA advocate.
“High-quality pre-K involves a highly qualified teacher with a bachelor’s degree that understands child development, that can identify kids with learning disabilities,” Clash said. “Identifying them and getting them the help they need early gets them back on grade level with their peers later on.”
However, budgetary issues have limited the number of children who can participate in state-funded programs, Clash said.
Gov. Tom Wolf’s 2017-18 $32.3 billion state budget proposal includes $65 million in additional funding for the Pre-K Counts program and an additional $10 million for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance program.
State House Republican leaders countered Wolf’s spending plan with a $31.5 billion budget proposal that trims the governor’s proposed additional $75 million for early childhood education to $25 million.
Sturla is the Democratic policy committee chairman, and Cutler is the House majority whip.
Statewide, of the 300,460 3- and 4-year-olds who live in Pennsylvania, 112,900 of those who are eligible do not have access to the 2,431 eligible state-funded pre-K locations, according to Pre-K for PA.
Of the 1,940 3- to 4-year-olds who live in Sturla’s 96th District, 828 of those who are eligible do not have access to the 19 eligible state-funded pre-K locations in Lancaster city, according to Pre-K for PA.
“This isn’t really a matter of there aren’t enough facilities. The facilities just can’t afford to do it for free,” Sturla said.
“It’s going to cost some money now and going to cost some money for 20 years,” Sturla said. “But in the end, that payoff is such that we can pay for it with saved prison costs, additional revenue from people actually getting decent jobs and being trained and well-educated and well-adjusted to community and socialization and things like that.”
In Cutler’s 100th District in southern Lancaster County, of the 1,878 3- to 4-year-olds who live there, 1,330 of those who are eligible do not have access to its four eligible state-funded pre-K locations, according to Pre-K for PA.
“The truth is, even though some folks may qualify for it, they may not want to participate in it,” Cutler said. “Perhaps they use a different program that is not state-qualified, but is run through their church or something like that.
“We have to recognize that everybody might have a different direction they want to go in,” he said. “Be mindful of that, but for the kids who want that opportunity, we should do our best to work toward that.”
CBS 21: Gov. Wolf and First Lady Host Easter Egg Hunt
HARRISBURG, Pa — Easter celebrations continued on Monday at the PA Governor’s Residence.
Governor Tom Wolf and First Lady Frances Wolf hosted an Easter Egg Hunt with area preschoolers.
Dozens of little ones scoured the governor’s lawn in search of brightly-colored eggs. Today’s event was cohosted by Pre-K for PA, a campaign that strives to provided high-quality early childhood education.
“We’re looking for priorities, where we are going to get the best return for investments of taxpayer dollars and early childhood education is the best it’s going to be. I don’t think there’s anything that is more important.”
The event also included a petting zoo with several of the Easter Bunny’s friends.
See the video here.
Public News Service: House Bill Shortchanges PA Kids, Education Advocates Say
April 6, 2017 by Andrea Sears
HARRISBURG, Pa. – A budget bill passed by the state House of Representatives on Tuesday falls far short of adequately funding Pre-K and child care, according to early learning advocates.
In his budget proposal, Gov. Tom Wolf calls for a $75 million increase in funding for high quality Pre-K.
But according to Jodi Askins, executive director of the Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children and principal partner of Pre-K for PA,
House Bill 218 would increase that funding by only $25 million.
“And in child care, the House actually cut about $28 million from what the current appropriations are, and the governor had proposed an increase,” she points out.
Wolf had proposed a $35 million increase in child care funding.
Askins says the governor’s proposed expansion of Pre-K would serve more than 8,400 children who are qualified for state funded Pre-K but aren’t getting it.
“Obviously, that is still a far cry from the 113,000 children that are still in need of access, but at least it is a significant step forward,” she states.
The Pre-K for PA campaign is calling for a state investment of about $400 million in Pre-K over the next three to four years.
Askins points out that every dollar invested in high quality Pre-K produces up to $17 in long term savings and benefits, beginning with greater success in school.
“We see increased success in high school graduation, decrease in remediation and juvenile delinquency, and higher rates of individuals who graduate from high school that also then go on to college,” she states.
Pre-K for PA is asking the legislature to include Wolf’s proposed increases for Pre-K and child care in the final budget.
Read the article here.
Sunbury Daily Item: Culver honored for dedication to early childhood education
By: Justin Strawser March 29, 2017
SUNBURY — State Rep. Lynda Schlegel Culver started reading to the children at the Sunbury Children Center on Tuesday morning, but it didn’t take long for the students to hop on her lap or help the state legislator of the 108th District with the words.
The same morning at the center, Pre-K for PA presented Culver with a 2017 Pre-K Champion award for her strong commitment and ongoing support of expanded investments in early childhood education across the Commonwealth. Bruce Clash, the state director of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, representing the Pre-K for PA campaign, presented the award to Culver.
“Honestly, this is an honor,” said Culver, also a member of the United Way Early Learning Investment Committee (ELIC) member. “It’s such a good cause. It’s huge.”
Following the presentation, Culver read three books — “Daniel Finds a Poem,” “Chicken Little” and “Pete the Cat” — to at least a dozen children plus their teachers, parents and those who joined Culver in the presentation. The students eagerly listened, joined in on certain parts and asked the legislator questions that she happily answered.
“I like the fact that I’m learning from the children hopefully just as much as they’re learning from me reading these book to them,” Culver said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Clash was joined in presenting the award by Joanne Troutman, president and CEO of the Greater Susquehanna Valley United Way; United Way ELIC members Norman Rich and Art Thomas; and Patty Edwards, program manager of Northumberland County Head Start.
Pre-K For PA estimates that 84 percent of eligible 3- and 4-year-olds in the 108th district lack access to state-funded, high quality pre-k programs. To satisfy the need, 54 additional classrooms would be needed to serve more than 1,000 more kids every year. Currently throughout Pennsylvania, nearly 113,000 eligible pre-school children — or 64 percent statewide — remain unserved.
“Research is clear that pre-k can make a difference,” said Troutman. “It can reduce grade repetition, special education placements, drop out rates, and ultimately help our school districts, region and the entire state save money. That’s precisely why the United Way has been such a strong supporter of more kids having access to high quality pre-k.”
Gov. Wolf’s budget proposal for the upcoming 2017-18 fiscal year includes $65 million in additional funding for the state’s Pre-K Counts program and an additional $10 million for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program. This $75 million expansion would serve approximately 8,400 additional children, according to Clash.
“These are the most at-risk kids in the community,” Edwards said. “They deserve to be on a level playing field.”
Thomas said the fight to bring early education to communities is real.
“Until early learning becomes part of the public school system, we will have an uphill battle,” Thomas said.
Read the article here.
Bucks County Courier Times: Former Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley and others press for more prekindergarten programs
February 1, 2017 by Chris English
Prekindergarten programs for children from low-income families are sorely lacking in Bucks County and the state, former Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley and other pre-K advocates said during a press conference Wednesday morning in Upper Southampton.
Gathering at the Jolly Toddlers Early Education Center on Second Street Pike, Cawley and others said a healthy infusion of public money and other pre-K support is needed so that families who meet income guidelines can send their children to quality programs like those offered at Jolly Toddlers.
Joan Benso, president and CEO of the nonprofit Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, said research done by her group showed that 112,900 children in the state and 3,900 in Bucks County currently qualify for publicly funded pre-K but are not getting it because of a lack of state or other public funding.
Fixing that situation would mean a better future for thousands of children across the county and state, Benso and others at the press conference said.
“We are looking for a sizeable investment in pre-K in the governor’s budget address (on Tuesday) that moves us toward allocating enough public funds ($340 million) by fiscal year 2020-2021 to ensure that all eligible children have access to high quality pre-K,” she said. “It is an investment in our future.”
Cawley, who now lives in Wrightstown and is president and CEO of the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, said his adopted son, Nick, benefited greatly from quality pre-K programs that Cawley and his wife, Suzanne, were able to send him to.
“This is a very personal effort for me,” said Cawley of his pre-K advocacy.
“Nick was very introverted but the pre-K seems to have unlocked a future for him and he’s now a reasonably well adjusted fourth-grader at St. Andrew (Catholic School in Newtown Township),” he continued. “Nick got lucky, but we need to make sure that all kids in Pennsylvania who need it get lucky. Quality pre-K programs give children a leg up educationally and also a chance to be social, and also gives educators an early opportunity to identify anti-social behavior and deal with it.”
Bolstering pre-K programs across the state would make for more solid citizens of the future, Cawley said.
“You can either invest today or be taxed two decades down the road for things like increased corrections system and welfare costs,” he said.
Christine Matik, supervisor of curriculum and instruction for the Centennial School District, said the district’s soon-to-come full-day kindergarten program is going to be great but will be even better with better prepared students entering it from quality pre-K programs.
“All research tells us a strong early foundation sets a trajectory for success,” she said.
Benso added that “military leaders, law enforcement officials, philanthropic groups, pediatricians and many state and local lawmakers have also talked about research that shows pre-K can make a difference. It can reduce grade repetition, special education placements, dropout rates and ultimately save the commonwealth money.”
Read the full article here.
