Prevent Child Abuse New York Blog

As New York and other states continue to struggle with budget shortfalls that have placed programs that focus on early childhood on the chopping block, we’d like to mention a recent issue brief from the Partnership for American’s Economic Success (PAES), part of the Pew Center on the States.   The brief offers policymakers a succinct argument for maintaining and even increasing investments in early childhood as a strategy for smart budgeting during the economic downturn.  PAES highlights the demonstrated economic gains in both the short term and the long term of supporting early childhood investments with solid examples from states.

Quite simply, children are our future.  Investing in their success is perhaps the best way to guarantee future prosperity.  Budget cuts that deprive children of a strong developmental start mean society and taxpayers lose too.

Effective pre-k programs reduce costly grade retention and special education services.  Each child that is held back a grade costs the state $16,000 per year.

Better-prepared pre-k graduates make kindergarten teachers more effective, which reduces costs because ready learners have a tendency to reduce teacher turnover, as well as enabling the whole class to learn more and progress more quickly.

Programs that start children on the path to successful adulthood—such as early education and parent support/home visiting—spur the workforce development in multiple ways.

Read “The Cost of State Disinvestment: Why states Can’t Afford to Cut Smart Early Childhood Programs.”