FIRST STEPS: Joan Lombardi, Ph.D. RESULTS July, 2012 Early Childhood: Looking Back and Moving Forward

Progress Challenges Towards a National Strategy

Reflecting on history…… First White House Conference on the Care of Dependent Children 1912 The Establishment of the Children’s Bureau 1935 Title V Maternal and Child Health 1965 Head Start

 The Child Care and Development Fund  The Children’s Health Insurance  The Education Goals  Early Head Start  State Prek Initiatives 1970’S -2008

EARLY CHILDHOOD MATTERS… THE CASE IS STRONG, THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE CONVERGES  Neuroscience  Molecular biology  Genomics  Developmental psychology  Epidemiology  Sociology  Economics

Relationships Matters, Health Matters

ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES AND ADULT CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE ACEs Source: Dong et al, 2004 Odds Ratio ,67,

Early Learning Health, Nutrition and Mental Health Family Support and Child Protection New appreciation for the integrated nature of early childhood development

New Vision Old Think Learning begins at school Health or education Care vs education Child focus vs parent focus Transition from preschool to school New Think Learning begins at birth Health and education Care and education Two generations Continuity prenatal- 8

 Early Childhood Funding in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act  The Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program  The Early Learning Challenge MORE RECENT RESOURCES

 Inequality  Funding  The policy environment  The capacity of the field CHALLENGES

VARIATION BY STATE: ALL CHILDREN

VARIATION BY STATE: CHILDREN UNDER SIX

DISPARITIES ON THE BAYLEY COGNITIVE ASSESSMENT BETWEEN HIGHER AND LOWER INCOME INFANTS AT 9 AND 24 MONTHS Source: Halle, T., Forry, N., Hair, E., Perper, K., Wandner, L., Wessel, J., & Vick, J. (2009). Disparities in Early Learning and Development: Lessons from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Birth Cohort (ECLS-B). Washington, DC: Child Trends.

SCHOOL READINESS BY MOTHER’S EDUCATION LEVEL Percentage of First-time Kindergartners Demonstrating Positive Indicators of School Readiness by Mother’s Education Level, 1998 Source: Child Trends and Center for Health Research. (2004). Early Child Development in Social Context. Data from K. Denton, E. Germino-Hausken, and J. West (project officer), America’s Kindergartners, NCES , (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. National Center for Education Statistics, 2000). Percent

Child Well Being in Rich Countries UNICEF Innocenti Research Center, Report Card 7, 2007

 Nearly 11 million children under age 5 spend time in some type of child care arrangement every week  On average the children of working mothers spend 35 hours a week in child care  Child care expenses take a significant bite out of family income, particularly for low income families Child Care Aware of America, 2012 THE FACTS ABOUT CHILD CARE IN THE UNITED STATES

 Only 1 out of 6 eligible families are able to access child care assistance  Head Start serves less than half the eligible children  Early Head Start serves less than 5 percent of the eligible children TIGHTENING RESOURCES

 Eligibility  Rates  Co-payments  Salaries  Other quality improvements QUALITY AND ACCESS THREATENED

 Much of the progress made under ARRA in child care has stalled  Families in 37 states were worse off in 2011 than in 2010 due to one or more changes in state child care assistance policies such as more restrictive eligibility criteria, longer waiting lists, higher co-payments or lower provider reimbursement rates (National Women’s Law Center) LACK OF CHILD CARE SUPPORT EFFECTS FAMILIES

QUALITY AND DURATION MATTER (MONTHS OF DEVELOPMENTAL ADVANTAGE ON LITERACY) Source: E Melish, EPPE Study

 Gap between what science says and what policies support  Complex policy environment  Difficult to describe and navigate  Policies not aligned  Multiple human needs  Slow policy process CURRENT POLICY ENVIRONMENT

 There are an estimated 2. 2 million individuals who are paid members of the early childhood workforce. They make up 30 % of the instructional workforce.  Estimated 3.2 million individuals provide non paid non- parental care  Women working in early care earn 31% less than women with similar qualifications in other fields  Continued difficulty attracting and retaining staff  Higher education institutions do not have capacity to respond to the diversity of roles and amount of preparation needed to assure high quality Workforce estimates by Rick Brandon, in The Early Childhood Care and Education Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities, Institute of Medicine and National Research Council, 2012 THE CAPACITY OF THE FIELD

Towards a National Strategy

 The Child Care and Development Fund  Head Start  Elementary and Secondary Education DEVELOPING A NATIONAL PLAN FOR UPCOMING REAUTHORIZATIONS

 Build public awareness about the importance of the work and the contribution to the economy  Include early childhood in any job creation measures  Target funding to improve the capacity of higher education institutions  Create community infrastructure/networks to support early childhood providers LAUNCHING A CAMPAIGN TO SUPPORT THE ECONOMY THROUGH IMPROVED EARLY CHILDHOOD JOBS

CREATING NEW VOICES AND UNITING THE GENERATIONS (SOURCE: GENERATIONS UNITED

Supporting a new generation of leaders

And thinking Across Borders…..

 200 million young children are at developmental risk due to poverty, malnutrition, lack of early stimulation and other factors  There is growing evidence from countries in the global south that we can intervene early and make a difference THE LANCET ON CHILD DEVELOPMENT 2007, 2011

Preschool enrolment by region and income –less than 20% for poorer income quintiles

Keep moving forward!