NEWS ROOM
Early Education Budget Investments Make Progress on Teacher Shortage Crisis
Today, the principal partners of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five, applauded the 2025-26 state budget’s focus on children and early education workforce investments, vital commitments finalized after prolonged negotiations.
Pennsylvania Head Start Providers Celebrate 60 Years, Sound Alarm on Budget Crisis Jeopardizing Early Learning
Today, the Pennsylvania Head Start Association, alongside bipartisan legislative leaders and providers from across the state, celebrated the 60th anniversary of the national Head Start program while issuing an urgent warning about the devastating impact of the ongoing state budget impasse and federal government shutdown on early childhood education.
PennLive: OpEd: Pre-K is Progress We Can’t Afford to Lose
For more than two decades, Pennsylvania has been investing in our youngest learners.
Year after year, budget after budget, across party lines and administrations, we’ve taken meaningful steps forward in growing access to Head Start and Pre-K Counts to help more children thrive in their earliest years and setting the stage for future success.
PennLive: Oped: Get this Done – Pre-K for PA
Few issues in Pennsylvania have united Republicans and Democrats over the years like the prospect of ensuring that our youngest learners are ready to succeed through high-quality pre-k programs like Pre-K Counts and Head Start. In fact, a September 2023 Susquehanna Polling and Research poll showed that 94% of PA voters believe that early learning is important, and 71% support increasing state funding to serve more eligible children in pre-K programs.
PennLive: OpEd: Pre-K is Progress We Can’t Afford to Lose
For more than two decades, Pennsylvania has been investing in our youngest learners.
Year after year, budget after budget, across party lines and administrations, we’ve taken meaningful steps forward in growing access to Head Start and Pre-K Counts to help more children thrive in their earliest years and setting the stage for future success.
PennLive: Oped: Get this Done – Pre-K for PA
Few issues in Pennsylvania have united Republicans and Democrats over the years like the prospect of ensuring that our youngest learners are ready to succeed through high-quality pre-k programs like Pre-K Counts and Head Start. In fact, a September 2023 Susquehanna Polling and Research poll showed that 94% of PA voters believe that early learning is important, and 71% support increasing state funding to serve more eligible children in pre-K programs.
MEDIA CONTACT
Kate Philips
215-850-4647
kphilips@prekforpa.org
EARLY EDUCATION EXPERTS
If you are a reporter looking for comment or background from one of our early education experts, please Kate Philips at kphilips@prekforpa.org.
LOGO FILES
PennLive: OpEd: Pre-K is Progress We Can’t Afford to Lose
For more than two decades, Pennsylvania has been investing in our youngest learners.
Year after year, budget after budget, across party lines and administrations, we’ve taken meaningful steps forward in growing access to Head Start and Pre-K Counts to help more children thrive in their earliest years and setting the stage for future success.
With Allegheny County and Pa. desperate for more pre-K teachers, Gov. Shapiro’s budget proposal offers some hope
A historic staffing crisis is causing classrooms and entire programs across the state to decrease their capacity or close, leaving working families without access to critical early learning programs. Less than half of eligible children in Pennsylvania attend a high-quality preschool program.


