In Washington State, early learning leaders have set 11 priorities for 2011, and despite the massive budget deficit they could make more progress than you might think.
The priorities are the next step inWashington’s statewide Early Learning Plan, which was released in September, and range from expanding home visiting to phasing in full-day kindergarten. The plan is the brainchild of the Department of Early Learning, Thrive by Five Washington and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.
The goals most likely to become realities this year are: expanding home visiting among at-risk families; developing the longitudinal data system for preschool to age 20; and revising and updating early learning and development benchmarks, DEL chief Bette Hyde told me in an interview last week.
Why? There is already money set aside for these projects, including $500,000 in federal funds, $168,565 in state money, and a match from Thrive by Five Washington, for home visiting (and another $800,000 once the federal government approves Washington’s plan) and a $2.5 million U.S. Education Department grant for the longitudinal initiative, according to the “Early Learning Joint Resolution Partnership 2011 Priority Strategies Early Learning Plan.” The ongoing field test and development of a quality rating and improvement system for child care providers and the effort to build a statewide infrastructure that supports early learning also have secured funding, the report says.
In fact, all of the priorities were chosen because the three lead agencies think they can be achieved in the current budget climate. I can’t cover all the existing and potential funding streams, so check out the “Priorities Strategies Early Learning Plan” for details.
The 11 strategies we outline in this 2011 Implementation Priorities document are ones that our three agencies agreed to focus on in 2011. These 11 strategies are essential to building an early learning system, and, for the most part, already have funding secured. In short, they are what we think we can tackle even in these tough economic times. – “Early Learning Joint Resolution Partnership 2011 Priority Strategies Early Learning Plan,” DEL, Thrive by Five Washington and OSPI.
