Early Childhood

Committee Members (*Red Denotes Committee Chairs)

Nurturing the education, personal growth and development of Idaho’s youngest students is the primary objective of IBCEE’s Early Childhood Learning Committee. While the State of Idaho has one of the fastest growing populations of young children in the nation, according to the most recent administration of the Idaho Reading Indicator, less than 50% of children entering kindergarten have the skills necessary to be successful in their first year of formal learning. This is an alarming figure – and it will take a coordinated effort of parents, educators, business and community leaders to ensure that children have access to resources that can alter the course of their lives.

Research validates the importance of children developing a solid foundation for education in their formative years. Failure to do so can have costly social and financial consequences. Research suggests that each low income child who participates in a quality early childhood learning program can:

• Return $7.16 for every dollar invested to the public in later years;
• Earn $228,000 more over the course of his/her work life;
• Return $150,000 to government in taxes paid and social costs avoided;
• Save the state $20,000 in delinquency and crime costs;
• Be 46% more likely to graduate from high school;
• More than double his/her chances of entering kindergarten “ready to learn”.

In addition, pre-kindergarten programs have demonstrated increased economic self-sufficiency for both the parent and child. Mothers of preschool participants remain on welfare 33% less time than average welfare recipient. Children who participate in a preschool program have a lower prevalence of child abuse and substance abuse.

IBCEE’s Early Childhood Learning Task Force is supportive of and proactively working toward increasing resources and access to early childhood learning opportunities in the State of Idaho. As a coalition of business leaders, we recognize the benefits that early childhood learning programs can have on shaping the next generation of our workforce and molding tomorrow’s leaders. Specifically, there is significant consensus among business leaders, educators and economists that pre-kindergarten programs are an essential first-step to improving the quality of early childhood learning.

To that end, IBCEE’s Early Childhood Learning Task Force will be working with the Idaho State Legislature and other interested stakeholders to pass legislation that would give Idaho school districts the opportunity to offer pre-kindergarten programs to children at age four. No school district would be required to offer pre-kindergarten programs, nor would any child be required to participate. Rather, in school districts that did choose to offer pre-kindergarten instruction this would be an opportunity for at-risk students to get a jump-start on their education.