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
- Read the story and watch the video in The Times-Herald
- Read the story in Pottstown Mercury
- Read the preview blurb in The Philadelphia Inquirer
- Read the “Roses” kudos to Pre-K for PA and new Pre-K Counts grants in MontCo in the Pottstown Mercury
- See the photo album on Facebook
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 |
