A bill being considered in Colorado would establish a dedicated early childhood department tasked with building a plan for universal preschool in the state by 2023. Using funds from a new nicotine tax recently approved by voters, the expansion of pre-K in the state would...
Florida is the latest state to take steps to expand early learning programs and tackle declining literacy rates, two topics that have remained at the forefront of officials’ plans to reopen schools, make up for learning lost to the pandemic, and strategically invest billions of...
The Biden administration proposed this week what would be the most significant expansion of education programs in at least a generation with a $1.8 trillion package focused on families and children. The proposal calls for universal pre-K for 3- and 4- year-olds, two years of...
In The 74, Sarah Rittling makes the case for the importance of early childhood education, and says that ESSA “more fully incorporates state and local efforts to expand early childhood education and the connections that exist between early learning and the K-12 system” as well as “establishes...
According to Linda Jacobson at Education Dive, starting this week, states will have the ability to start applying for a quarter-of-a-billion dollars in Preschool Development Grants under ESSA that they can use to “expand access to and improve the coordination and quality of early-childhood education programs for children...
The Dept. of Education released guidelines on how states can “invest in early learning” under ESSA. The goal of the guidelines is to “improve the health, social-emotional, and cognitive outcomes for all children” and to keep students on track to “graduate from high school, college...
Education Week reported on the Dept. of Education’s guidance on funding young learner programs under ESSA. The piece identified various options for federal funds to be used for young learners including: 1, training early learning teachers; 2, updating and aligning certification and licensing standards for...
The U.S. Dept. of Education released a statement applauding the Obama Administration for creating greater access to early learning programs. Under ESSA, a new preschool program will, for the first time, “promote coordination in early learning among local communities; align preschool with early elementary school;...
Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Robert C. Scott (D-VA-3) sent a joint letter to Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. and Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell, urging them to support Pre-K Development Grants under ESSA, and provide strong oversight for...
Gov. Mike Pence sent a letter to the Dept. of Education requesting more information about federal dollars for a statewide pre-K program created under ESSA. He asks to be notified when the application is open. Read more here.
