The General Assembly must act quickly to stem early childhood learning losses by appropriating funds to allow Pre-K Counts and Head Start programs to offer summer instruction for children that will enter kindergarten in the fall (four weeks of instruction and 50% of programs participate = $9 million). 

TAKING THIS APPROACH WILL:

Protect gains made through state pre-k investments and boost the chances of school success after this traumatic year

Pre-K Counts and Head Start program models succeed when children receive the full range of educational supports for 180 days a year. In order to reduce the loss of academic gains associated with the crisis, the Commonwealth must appropriate funds now and inform providers that they can make up for a portion of lost instructional days this summer for children entering kindergarten in the fall. In person summer instruction should only be offered if it is safe to do so for the children and teachers. If COVID-19 prohibits it, additional supports and virtual options should be considered for these families with these funds to help ensure a successful transition to kindergarten. This will protect the strong, bipartisan commitment to our pre-k learners and allow them to enter kindergarten with the social/emotional and academic skills that ready them for school success.