Early Childhood and Economic Development in Wisconsin

Federal Reserve Chair, Ben Bernanke

"Although education and the acquisition of skills is a lifelong process, starting early in life is crucial. Recent research documents the high returns that early childhood programs can pay in terms of subsequent educational attainment and in lower rates of social problems, such as teenage pregnancy and welfare dependency. The most successful early childhood programs appear to be those that cultivate both cognitive and non-cognitive skills and that engage families in stimulating learning at home."

The Connection - Early Education and a Healthy Economy

A growing body of research at the national and state level provide irrefutable evidence of the connection between quality early childhood education and the future health of our economy. The Public Policy Forum in Milwaukee recently unveiled a map of early childhood outcomes in a matrix format containing a wide range studies of research on early childhood outcomes.  An additional resource focused specifically on early childhood economic impact studies can be found in the State of Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's annotated bibliography

National leaders like the Committee for Economic Development (CED) and the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis are weighing in on the importance of this connection. CED has published several reports on this issue including:  The Economic Promise of Investing in High-Quality Preschool: Using Early Education to Improve Economic Growth and the Fiscal Sustainability. The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis has also published several studies.

Four out of five American business leaders surveyed in 2005 by Zogby International recognized the connection between early investments in education and competitiveness in the global economy.

Who has moved early childhood to top of their agenda?

Joining CED are several national organizations including business alliances, philanthropy and higher education that have moved early childhood to top of their agenda as an issue requiring attention if we are to solve a host of national problems we face.

• The Partnership for America's Success (PAES) is a consortium of business leaders, economists and philanthropists, including current chair Robert Dugger, current president of CED. The initiative is designed to "help the nation better understand how we can secure our economic future by helping all children to become successful adults - literate, numerate, job-ready and team-capable. The ultimate goal of the Partnership is to make the successful development of children the top economic priority of the nation." Two research reports published by PAES, " Losing Ground? Federal Investments In Children Will Shrink Over the Next Decade if Present Policies Continue" and "Investing in Children" elaborate on why this is such a critical concern.
   
• The Buffett Early Childhood Fund established in 2005 supports: early childhood through practice supporting Educare centers offering high quality early learning environments for children; policy, through the Birth to Five Policy Alliance; and, Knowledge, through the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child.
   
• The Birth to Five Policy Alliance has catalogued best policy practices of states and has authored a brief "Birth to Five Policy Alliance: Shifting the Odds for Young Children and Risk". 
   
• The Ounce of Prevention Fund and the Birth to Five Policy Alliance are leading a national alliance committed to increasing awareness of the link between quality early education and strong future economic development.
   
• The Pew Charitable Trust has named pre-K education as a top priority and supported key projects to advance the support of high quality early learning in Wisconsin and in the country.
   
• Pre-K Now has become a leading voice for the importance of investing early to improve outcomes for children and for our long term economy.  Their work includes: conducting research and disseminating key reports on early education and the economy; developing tools and resources for business, philanthropy and media leaders interested in building momentum and action around this issue. 
  
  
• The United Way of America has launched the Born Learning a public engagement campaign to assist new parents and other caregivers to help their children get off to the best possible start, turning "every day moments into learning opportunities." Many local United Ways focus on early education as a priority of their community funding. 
   
• The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), recently elected Elizabeth Burmaster, Wisconsin's state superintendent as the director. The CCSSO has a long history of championing and leading on the importance of quality early education to prepare children for school
   
• The National Center on Education and Economy issued a report in December, 2006: Tough Choices Tough Times: The Report of the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce. The report names high-quality, universal early childhood education as one of ten critical steps necessary to transform our nation's education system so that we are adequately prepared to compete in the global economy.
  
  
• The National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) goal "is to produce and communicate the knowledge base required to ensure that every American child can receive a good education at ages three and four. The Institute seeks to provide policy makers with timely information addressing the practical problems they face. The Institute offers independent research-based advice and technical assistance to four primary groups: policy makers, journalists, researchers, and educators." A series of one-page fact sheets on early childhood research can be found on the NIEER website.
  
  
• Cornell University Cornell Cooperative Extension, Department of City and Regional Planning, Linking Economic Development and Child Care that has compiled detailed state economic profiles.
  
  
• Fight Crime: Invest in Kids has partnered with law enforcement leaders and other community leaders to tie good quality child care to less crime building off of research, tying good quality child care with improved child outcomes.
  
  
• Philanthropic partners include the William Gates Foundation "Thrive by Five" partnership with community and business leaders to improve early childhood education. The Buffett Early Childhood Fund has also been a leader sponsoring quality early learning programs and supporting the efforts of CED to elevate awareness of this issue.