Preschool initiative benefits Iowa kids

Senate Democrats are strong supporters of early childhood education efforts in Iowa, but for too long our state lacked a systematic approach to implementing quality preschool.

In the past, Iowa has targeted preschool programs to families based on their income or to children with disabilities. However, research has shown that ALL children can benefit from access to quality preschool.

In 2007, the Legislature approved a statewide preschool initiative in response to research showing Iowa kids were entering kindergarten without the language and literacy skills necessary to be successful in school.

Before this legislation, only 19 percent of 3- and 4-year-old children in Iowa received a quality preschool education. Today, 60 percent of our kids have access to preschool. In fact, more than 13,000 preschoolers in 175 school districts have received preschool programming through both public and private programs. Many additional students attend such programs as Head Start, Early Childhood Special Education, Title I and Shared Visions.

We are closely examining every aspect of state spending to balance the budget responsibly. We’ll do our best to maintain our investment in quality early childhood education because we know it pays to prepare our kids to succeed in school and beyond.