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Blagojevich recently signed legislation establishing Preschool for
All, a historic five-year expansion of early childhood programs that
makes Illinois the first state in the nation to offer voluntary,
high-quality preschool to all 3- and 4-year-olds whose parents want
them to participate. Prior to signing this bill, he had made a
historic $90 million investment to expand preschool to 25,000
at-risk kids during his first three years in office. "Both science
and common sense tell us that a good, early start makes a big
difference in how our children grow up," Blagojevich said.
"Preschool for All gives every 3- and 4-year-old the same chance to
begin learning early and to prepare for success in school and life."
Under the governor's leadership, funding for the Illinois State
Board of Education's early childhood programs has grown $135
million, making preschool available to an additional 35,000 children
so far. "We're off to a good start, but we can't slow down," the
governor added. "It will take hard work from many stakeholders to
build a system that provides quality preschool programs to all
children in Illinois."
The "Making Preschool for All a Reality" summit was funded by a
National Governors Association grant and brought together
stakeholders from around the state to further develop strategies for
implementing Preschool for All over the next three to five years,
including: (1) expanding space capacity in communities; (2) using
best practices to meet the needs of bilingual and bicultural
children and families; (3) enrolling new children through effective
outreach strategies; and (4) helping communities to develop plans
for birth to age 3 services.
Preschool for All began this summer with a $45 million expansion
of the Early Childhood Block Grant, which funds preschool programs
and programs for at-risk infants and toddlers. Approximately 10,000
additional children will be reached this year, with similar
expansions planned in each of the next four years until all 3- and
4-year-olds have the opportunity to attend a high-quality preschool.
During expansion, programs serving children at risk of school
failure are the first priority for new funding, followed by families
earning up to four times the federal poverty level, or $80,000 for a
family of four.
Strategies generated at the summit will be advanced by the
Illinois Early Learning Council, a legislative-created advisory
board charged with developing a high-quality, comprehensive early
childhood system that serves Illinois children from birth to age 5.
The council crafted detailed recommendations that served as the
blueprint for the governor's Preschool for All initiative, which
passed the General Assembly with strong bipartisan support last May.
"Thanks to the governor and General Assembly, the resources for
early childhood education in Illinois are expanding rapidly," said
Elliot Regenstein, co-chair of the Early Learning Council. "The
council has been devoted to ensuring that those resources are used
effectively, and today will help us to address some of the
challenges that must be overcome to guarantee continued success."
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 Summit participants prepared for the working session by reviewing
issue briefs on each of the four topics. These papers summarized
past efforts, examined research and framed the key issues to be
addressed. For example, as Preschool for All grows to meet heavy
demand, communities must maximize existing facilities and find
creative ways to offer services where families need them, such as by
promoting partnerships between school systems and child care
centers, or by building child care networks that share a certified
preschool teacher.
Similarly, the diversification of Illinois communities requires
strategies to develop qualified bilingual teachers and curriculum to
meet the needs of new Americans, and provides an opportunity to
dramatically expand services in traditionally underserved
communities. As Preschool for All expands, a more robust system of
outreach and information dissemination is needed to ensure that
families are able to take full advantages of available services.
Finally, since Preschool for All commits 11 cents of every preschool
dollar to infants and toddlers facing the steepest challenges,
careful planning is needed to ensure these programs reach all
Illinois communities.
The Illinois Preschool for All initiative has earned national
recognition for its comprehensive scope and practical approach of
building upon the proven framework of its existing state
pre-kindergarten program. Dozens of stakeholders took part in the
Early Learning Council's efforts to develop Preschool for All. Along
with Elliot Regenstein, the council is co-chaired by Harriet Meyer,
president of the Ounce of Prevention Fund.
"We are pleased to have the opportunity to support Governor
Blagojevich in hosting a summit on early childhood," said John
Thomasian, director the National Governors Association Center for
Best Practices. "Illinois is the first state to begin implementing a
program to offer quality preschool to all 3- and 4-year-old
children. Governors from around the country will benefit from
Illinois' leadership."
"This summit brings together people who care about doing the
right thing for our youngest learners," said Jesse H. Ruiz, chairman
of the Illinois State Board of Education. "We have to build on the
progress we've already made through the governor's commitment to
early childhood education. Our next steps are to make sure Preschool
for All expands on the success of the last four years by giving
every kid a great start in lifelong learning."
The Illinois Early Learning Council was created with bipartisan
legislative support in 2003 and appointments to the council are made
by the governor and leaders of the Illinois General Assembly. Its 50
members include early childhood practitioners, policymakers, civic
and business leaders, advocates, and representatives from state
agencies. In addition, several standing committees develop detailed
recommendations addressing a wide range of topics and provide a
forum for participation by more than 200 additional stakeholders.
[News release from the governor's
office] |
