News release
What Can City Leaders Do to Promote Early Learning and Healthy Development for Kids?
June 30, 2016
Lisa Lederer, 202-371-1996
New Guide Describes How Cities can Expand and Increase Early Learning Opportunities and Help Children Thrive
In Jacksonville, Florida, more than 8,000 four-year-olds are enrolled in a city book club and receive free backpacks filled with reading resources, and each month, their parents receive a book to read with them. A new initiative in Rochester, New York will help expand developmental screenings for children, by helping programs that already screen increase their capacity, and training child care center staff and teachers to conduct such screenings. In Salt Lake County, Utah, low-income women pregnant with their first child can receive prenatal and post-natal visits from nurse practitioners in their homes, thanks to the city’s Nurse-Family Partnership Program.
These are just some of the ways mayors and other city leaders are supporting children’s healthy development and early learning opportunities. They are included in Strong Start for Strong Cities, a new guide to help city leaders develop affordable, high quality early learning programs that help children develop social competence and academic skills. The guide was developed by MomsRising, the National League of Cities and School Readiness Consulting.
“A child's readiness for Kindergarten is a key indicator of that child's future success in school and life,” said Clifford Johnson, Executive Director of the Institute for Youth, Education and Families of the National League of Cities. “With this in mind, cities across the country have worked to put in place high-quality early learning programs in order improve outcomes for all children. The success of those programs depends on the input and active participation of a variety of stakeholders including city leaders parents and educators. The NLC YEF Institute believes Strong Start for Strong Cities will prove to be a valuable tool for local officials and their crucial partners in developing affordable and sustainable high-quality preschool programs that set cities' youngest residents on the path to success."
The guide includes a list of “best practices” for supporting early learning and healthy development that focus on:
- raising public awareness of the importance of early learning, including preschool and childcare;
- enhancing quality of and access to early learning programs;
- enlisting community leaders and businesses to support early learning;
- building the local early learning infrastructure;
- promoting racial equity and reducing the opportunity gap faced by children of color;
- supporting parents, guardians and care providers;
- meeting the needs of preschool children; and
- promoting dual language access.
“It’s critical city leaders find ways to advance early learning education opportunities in their communities,” said Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price. “Not only is it the right thing to do, but it’s the smart thing to do. As one of the fastest-growing large cities in the U.S. we are acutely aware of the demand for a well-educated workforce and know that economic development is uniquely tied to education. In Fort Worth, the movement to prioritize early education has grown from an idea to a collective movement involving business, non-profit, education and city leaders.”
The city of Fort Worth supports Family Resource Centers that offer parent education programs, lending libraries of development resources, consultations with early childhood experts, and other resources that support children’s healthy development. Mayor Price recently worked with the City Council to pass a resolution that made early learning one of the City Council’s legislative priorities.
Strong Start for Strong Cities includes short profiles of 19 programs, including the one in Fort Worth, and stories from moms across the country that highlight the importance of early learning and early childhood development programs, such as:
At the age of 3, my child was declared developmentally delayed by specialists in the school district. As a result, he was accepted into the only preschool program in the area funded by public funds. There are a few other preschools in the county, but are run by area churches that require membership in other to accept children into their programs.
By the time he entered elementary school, my child was at the same level of other kids in his class. At the age of 7, he made into the Venture program for gifted children. My child’s is a success story. Without the support of preschool teachers, he would’ve never made. This program is only opened to a few kids every year. Every child in our state/nation should be given the same opportunity.
- Julieta, Minnesota
I was a single working mom, a teacher. I had to have quality infant care, childcare, preschool, after school care, and summer childcare (since I had to work summers and weekends to make ends meet). As a teacher, my income was considered below the median income and I needed affordable care. I qualified for the Child Development Centers reduced fees but it was still hard. I had to search, plead, take long bus rides around the city and rely on family and friends at every turn. Without affordable infant and preschool care I would not have made it.
- Sandra, North Carolina
I worked in a kindergarten for 5 years and was astonished to find that some children enter kindergarten without knowing the alphabet, the colors, how to count to 20, the names of various objects and animals in our world. They start behind and - now that I’ve worked in a fourth grade class for 3 years -I observe that they don’t catch up. Pre-K. Education is crucial for under-enriched families. It’s in our country’s best interest to provide it.
- Pam, California
“Early learning opportunities and other programs that enhance early childhood development are crucial building blocks for our children’s success,” said Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director of MomsRising.org. “The city leaders whose programs we have profiled in this guide are helping to lead the way in ensuring that children in their cities have a strong start in life because they recognize that investments in our children are investments in our cities’ and our country’s future.”
Programs featured in the guide are in: Irvine, Calif.; San Diego; San Francisco; San Jose, Calif.; Santa Monica, Calif.; Denver, Colo.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Boston; Cambridge, Mass.; Kansas City, Mo; New York City; Rochester, NY; Durham, NC; Dayton, Ohio; Pittsburgh, Pa; Providence, RI; Fort Worth, TX; Salt Lake County, Utah; and Seattle.
Strong Start for Strong Cities is intended to help mayors, city council members, school boards and other city leaders create and sustain affordable, high quality early learning programs that will help children succeed academically and in life. It features the latest research on early learning, proven best practices for advancing high-quality early learning at the city level, and stories from parents, providers, and concerned citizens in. MomsRising members across the country will begin delivering copies of the book to mayor’s offices next month.
The guide is part of the “Strong Start for Strong Cities” initiative to support access to high-quality early learning opportunities in cities across the country.
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National League of Cities and the Institute for Youth, Education, and Families: The National League of Cities is dedicated to helping city leaders build better communities. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities, towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans. NLC's Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF Institute) helps municipal leaders take action on behalf of the children, youth and families in their communities. NLC launched the YEF Institute in 2000 in recognition of the unique and influential roles that mayors, city councilmembers and other local leaders play in strengthening families and improving outcomes for youth.
The mission of School Readiness Consulting is comprised of one overarching goal: making sure all children, especially those in under-resourced communities, experience an early childhood education that translates to success in school and in life. We impact the lives of young children and their families by partnering states, cities, school districts, non-profit organizations, and foundations in pursuit of improving school readiness. Our comprehensive approach integrates our commitment to social justice and our expertise across practice, strategy, and evaluation to build equitable systems for young children, birth through third grade.