Bethlehem Mayor Proclaims October Pre-K for PA Month

The Mayor of Bethlehem, Robert Donchez, has proclaimed October Pre-K for PA Month and signed the City of Bethlehem on as a supporting organization. The Pre-K for PA issue campaign advocates for high-quality preschool for all of Pennsylvania’s three-and-four-year olds.

The goal of the campaign is to ensure that all children in the Commonwealth are ready to succeed in school by making high-quality pre-k accessible to every 3- and 4-year-old, focusing on the most at-risk first. While Pennsylvania’s high-quality pre-k programs have been proven effective, they are currently reaching just one in six children.

Other supporting Bethlehem organizations include Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley, Hispanic Center of the Lehigh Valley, Giggles Kids Club, Foundations Early Learning Center, Project Child and Northampton Community College’s Children’s Centers.

Access to high-quality pre-k has both immediate and lasting economic benefits that extend far beyond the individual child, according to a report from ReadyNation/America’s Edge released in May. The study, which was commissioned as a research element of the Pre-K for PA campaign, found that for every $1 dollar invested in Pre-k, the state’s economy would see $1.79 in spending and economic activity.

“If Pennsylvania funded pre-K for all three- and four-year-olds, that investment would generate $800 million in additional goods and services and create almost 28,000 new jobs,” said Sara Watson, Ph. D., National Director of ReadyNation/America’s Edge.

The return on every dollar that Pennsylvania invests in early childhood programs is due to a “multiplier effect” that outpaces even the robust boost seen in seven out of nine other major business sectors studied, such as retail trade and manufacturing.

The report examined two potential economic scenarios to model the possible outcomes: first estimating the benefits if Pennsylvania fully funded its existing Pre-K Counts program to cover all children from families earning up to 300% of the federal poverty level; and next expanding access to all unserved three- and four-year-olds regardless of income.

Pennsylvania voters have expressed strong, bipartisan support for making the additional investment in high-quality pre-k. A statewide poll of more than 600 likely voters conducted in November 2013 shows 63 percent of Pennsylvanians support increasing funding for pre-k and 58 percent of those polled saying they favor increased funding even if it required a tax increase.

Support for expanding access to high-quality pre-k is strong across party lines. The poll found that in both major parties and among independents, a majority of likely voters favors giving every three- and four-year-old access to high-quality pre-k.

This initiative was launched by a statewide coalition, including Delaware Valley Association for the Education of Young Children, Economy League of Greater Philadelphia, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, Mission: Readiness, Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children, Pennsylvania Head Start Association, Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, Pittsburgh Area Association for the Education of Young Children, Public Citizens for Children and Youth, and United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey.

You can sign up at www.prekforpa.org, like them at Facebook.com/prekforpa, or follow @prek4pa.