The voluntary program would include a focus on special needs children and kids from low-income families. It's similar to legislation Casey introduced in 2007.
View full size
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey today announced he plans to introduce a major education proposal to provide at least one year of high quality pre-kindergarten to American children.
The voluntary program would include a focus on special needs children and kids from low-income families. It's similar to legislation Casey, D-Pa., introduced in 2007.
Business leaders are some of the biggest supporters of quality pre-K programs because they know they're essential to a skilled workforce, Casey said during a conference call today with reporters.
President Obama's State of the Union address called for an early learning initiative.
"One of the most important steps we can take for our economy
and our children is to invest in early education," Casey said. "Having
at least one year of pre-K will better prepare our children in an increasingly
competitive global economy"
Children who do not attend high quality preschool are five times more likely to be chronic lawbreakers as adults and more likely to abuse illegal drugs, Casey said research shows. Children who do attend a good preschool do better in school, are more likely to graduate and become productive adults, he said.
Every dollar invested in high quality preschool can save as much as $7 in other costs, such as crime, welfare, remediation and special education.Casey couldn't provide cost estimates or say how such a pre-K program would be funded. He said he didn't attach a cost estimate due to the current fiscal constraints.
"I think we can arrive at a funding level that would make sense to at least begin the process," Casey said, acknowledging it may be smaller than he likes.
The real hurdle will be gaining bipartisan consensus on how to do this, he said, but he thinks it can be done by relying on research.
"In the end there's really no Democratic or Republican way to prepare a highly skilled work force," Casey said.
The program would require a match from states that opt to participate. Casey said states can design programs to meet their unique needs or enhance existing pre-K offerings.
He acknowledged the match could be difficult for states but said the benefits of such programs are irrefutable.
Pennsylvania has made great strides in offering high quality preschool programs to at-risk 3- and-4-year-olds through its Pre-K Counts program but in 2011-12 it only served 11,380 kids or 4 percent of the state's preschool-aged children, Casey said.
"We've got a ways to go," he said.
Pennsylvania Partnership for Children President and CEO Joan Benso said her organization strongly supports Casey's bill, and the state needs to expand its pre-kindergarten investments. She noted it's a similar concept to the federal Children's Health Insurance Program that fueled a large expansion of health coverage.
"We need to build on this effort," Benso said. "A partnership with the federal government would allow Pennsylvania and many other states to expand our efforts and serve more children."
Casey's proposed law would require programs to use research-based curriculum, require teachers to earn a bachelor's degree within six years and limit class size to a maximum of 20 children and 10-to-1 student/teacher ratio.