Early childhood education is one of most cost-effective investments we as a society can make. That's why Congresswoman Mazie Hirono has made the PRE-K Act a top legislative priority. Here's a two-and-a-half-minute background video on the bill:
Please follow me below the fold for more details.
The Providing Resources Early for Kids (PRE-K) Act would establish a federal grant program to support state efforts to provide high quality early education opportunities for our children.
Congresswoman Hirono was able to get the bill passed out of the Labor and Education Committee last term and was honored as the first person to receive the national Pre-K Champion Award in 2008.
Specifically, here's what the legislation (H.R. 702) would do:
* Awards funding to states, on a competitive basis, to support the quality of state pre-k programs
This means funding to:
o reduce student-teacher ratios;
o recruit and retain qualified teachers with bachelor's degrees in early childhood education;
o address the cultural and linguistic needs of English Language Learners;
o provide full-day vs. half-day programs, and
o other activities that support program quality.
* Allows funding to be used to expand enrollment only after states have met high quality standards
This is to prevent money from going to expanding mediocre or poor quality programs and to create an incentive for states to boost quality with their own money.
* Gives states an incentive to invest in the quality of their pre-k programs
The bill requires states receiving grants to match federal dollars with state dollars and prevents states from using federal dollars to supplant state dollars spent on pre-k.
* Encourages states to continue providing pre-k in a variety of high-quality settings
The bill allows funding to flow to whatever type of licensed pre-k provider the state recognizes, including school districts, Head Start providers, and community-based settings such as child care centers.
A similar bill, H.R. 3221, was introduced last month, with Congresswoman Hirono as an original co-sponsor. It's unclear whether H.R. 702 or H.R. 3221 will be the vehicle by which the House of Representatives considers supporting early childhood education this term. So, it's probably advisable to ask your Representative to support both bills.
You can check the status of both bills at Thomas.
H.R. 3221, introduced by Congressman George Miller, currently has 41 co-sponsors. H.R. 702 is now up to 78 co-sponsors, with Congressman Joe Sestak the most recent signatory just last week.
With the summer recess upon us, it's likely you'll have the chance to see your Member of Congress over the next few weeks. Won't you please consider offering kokua (help) by taking the time to ask your Representative to co-sponsor H.R. 702 and H.R. 3221?
Congresswoman Hirono explains why this is so important:
The debate about the importance of quality early childhood education is over; study after study has shown that high quality early education does make a positive difference in a child’s life. Children who attend good preschools are more likely to perform well in school and graduate from high school, and are less likely to commit a crime or use drugs. With that important debate settled, we need to work with states to encourage investments in quality early education opportunities.
On behalf of the keiki (children), please accept my sincere mahalo (thanks).
Aloha!