Early Education – Return on Investment Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment In Alabama, 63% of children from birth to age five have all their parents in the work force. So access to child care, preschool, Head Start, or PreK is a necessary support for working families. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment And, if the program is HIGH QUALITY, it is the best investment in better schools, improved outcomes, and more productive future employees. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment Over one-half the gap in school achievement is present at school entry. If a child is not reading on grade level in first grade, there is a 90% chance he will not read on grade level by grade 4. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment Children who attend high quality child care have higher achievement in math and reading through adolescence as well as higher earnings in adulthood. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment What does this mean for the business community? Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment The highly touted annual real rate of return on the stock market that prevailed between 1871 and 1998 was 6.3% By comparison, a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis determined that annual real rates of return on public investments in the Perry Preschool Project (high quality preschool) were 16% Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment While 85% of a child’s brain development occurs by age three, less than 1% of public investments in children have occurred by that time in Alabama (Early Learning Left Out). Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment Alabama’s First Class Pre-K program for 4-year olds is one of (2) programs in the country to score a perfect 10 in quality -- but, it is only funded at a level that allows us to serve 6.5% of our state’s 4-year olds. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment For every $1 of state funding spent on eligible expenditures, Department of Human Resources (DHR) draws down $2.10 in matching CCDF federal funds to support child care for working families.     In 2009 DHR is missing out on approximately $12M for the program; due to current economic conditions, the state cannot provide the $5M in matching funds. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment The Employers’ Child Care Alliance is a community initiative led by major businesses and employers. “I realized that the people I’m trying to hire today, the young people we’re giving literacy tests to. . .they were in child care when I started in this business 15 years ago”. -- Human Resources Director from Uniroyal/Michelin Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama

Early Education – Return on Investment Ask Alabama Poll Results, September 2009: On the list of “changes or improvements in jobs and employment” 90% of women and 80% of men reported that child care was important to them. Making Young Children the Top Economic Priority in Alabama