(July 2018 Newsletter)
Applause for PA’s funding boost for Early Childhood Education
In a recent op-ed in the Philadelphia Inquirer, members of the Pennsylvania Early Learning Investment Commission thank Governor Wolf and the Pennsylvania General Assembly for a remarkable, bipartisan effort awarding early learning programs an additional $66.5 million in the 2018-2019 budget.
“As business leaders, we commend them for this savvy investment. These allocations, a 6.7 percent increase overall, demonstrate a belief that the potential of every Pennsylvania child can be cultivated to strengthen individuals, communities and our economy.”
You can read the full op-ed signed by Jack Brennan, Chairman Emeritus & Senior Adviser of The Vanguard Group; Janet Haas, Chair of the William Penn Foundation and Jerry Maginnis, retired Managing Partner of KPMG’s Philadelphia Office HERE
For a closer look at the Early Learning investments included in the 18-19 state budget that were referenced in the Op-Ed, read our special budget blog post HERE
Digging Deeper into the Economics of the Early Childhood Workforce
Despite minimum wage hikes, ECE wages stay low. A consequence of low pay is that the participation of child care worker families and preschool/kindergarten teacher families in public income support programs is more than double the rate for workers across all occupations.
The second edition of the biennial Early Childhood Workforce Index continues to track the status of the ECE workforce and related state policies in order to understand changes over time. It shows that between 2014 and 2016, more than one-half (53 percent) of child care workers, compared to 21 percent of the U.S. workforce as a whole, were part of families enrolled in at least one of four public support and health care programs (EITC, CHIP, SNAP and TANF, or food stamps).
Read more in the Early Childhood Workforce Index 2018 (Berkeley) HERE
Meanwhile, a recent blog post from New America focuses more on the wage findings from the Workforce Index and says the average worker still makes only slightly more than $10 an hour, the equivalent of $22,290 annually. In 2015 to 2017, child care workers saw a boost in pay, but it was mostly due to states that raised their minimum wage during that time span.
Read the New America blog outlining the median hourly wage issue HERE
The Bipartisan Policy Center partnered with Luntz Global to survey conservative and liberal viewpoints on child care and early learning. One overwhelming conclusion from this research:
“Conservatives and liberals alike recognize that early childhood development is critical to the well being of the nation as a whole and even align on some possible policy approaches.”
From that, 78% of survey respondents said they support assistance programs that ensure child care workers receive a living wage.
Read more on these research conclusions from the Bipartisan Policy Center HERE
Early Learning Yields Big Results in
Franklin County
Commissioner, Andy Williford (Volvo Construction Company), took part in a panel discussion recently at the “Our Babies, Our Future” event in Franklin County recently.
Seated left to right, the panel included Bob Thomas, Franklin County Commissioner; Karen Grimm-Thomas, OCDEL; Brenda Jones Harden, University of Maryland and event guest speaker; Annette Searfoss, Franklin County Head Start; Andy Williford; and Stacie Horvath, Franklin County Human Services.
Williford, who oversees 1,000 employees at the Shippensburg Volvo plant, said early intervention and education is crucial to the success of his business.
“It’s very important for us to look at how we’re going to be ready for the future and what it means in terms of economic development for the future,” Williford said. “The more ready we are with the workforce, the better off the community will be.”
Read the full article on the event from The Record Herald HERE
Recent Articles:
- PAEarlyLearning.com: National and State Policy for Transforming ECE Financing
- WESA-FM: Child Well-Being Study Ranks Pennsylvania 17th Overall
- PAEarlyLearning.com: Ask the One Important Question of Early Childhood
- SLATE: Welcome to Life in America’s Child Care Deserts
- Lancaster Online: Why Focus on Lancaster’s Youngest Kids Could Break Cycle of Poverty
- PAEarlyLearning.com: Transforming the Financing of Early Care and Education
- Taylor & Francis Online: Erie’s Future Fund: Addressing Barriers in Education Through Cross-Sector Collaboration
- MyChesCo: Senator Killion Announces Pre-K Counts Grants for Chester County
- Bipartisan Policy Center: Building Bipartisan Support for Early Childhood Excellence (Webinar)