Alabama School Readiness Alliance Welcomes Governor's Plan to Invest in State's High Quality, Voluntary Pre-K Program
By: Stephen Crews
Updated: February 8, 2013
In
his State of the State address, Alabama Governor Robert Bentley today
added his name to a growing bipartisan list of state leaders who
are endorsing the Alabama School Readiness Alliance's proposal to
increase funding for Alabama's First Class Pre-K program in the 2013
Legislative Session.
Governor Bentley joins, among others, Senator Trip Pittman (SD-32) and Rep. Jay Love (HD-74), respectively the chairmen of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee and the House Ways and Means Education Committee, as well as the Business Council of Alabama, the Alabama School Boards Association and the Alabama Education Association in publicly endorsing the expansion of First Class Pre-K.
Governor Bentley joins, among others, Senator Trip Pittman (SD-32) and Rep. Jay Love (HD-74), respectively the chairmen of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee and the House Ways and Means Education Committee, as well as the Business Council of Alabama, the Alabama School Boards Association and the Alabama Education Association in publicly endorsing the expansion of First Class Pre-K.
Governor
Bentley's call for the legislature to do what it takes to expand
Alabama's First Class Pre-K comes a few months after the Alabama School
Readiness Alliance
launched a ten-year campaign spearheaded by its Pre-K Task Force -- a
statewide coalition made up of 38
prominent leaders from the business, education, medical, legal,
philanthropic, military and child advocacy communities
that came together to recommend a vision for fully funding for the
state's high quality, voluntary pre-k program over the next decade.
In
November, the ASRA Pre-K Task Force unveiled a series of
recommendations that would open the doors of Alabama's First Class Pre-K
to all of the state's four-year-olds
while maintaining the program's high standards for quality and
accountability.
"Governor
Bentley's announcement today that he will recommend additional funding
for First Class Pre-K in his budget proposal is the first
step in a multi-year effort to give all of Alabama's four-year-olds an
opportunity to attend the nation's best pre-k program," said Mike Luce, president and COO of Harbert Management and a co-chair of the Alabama School Readiness Alliance's Pre-K Task
Force. "We applaud Governor
Bentley for his endorsement of Alabama's First Class Pre-K, a common
sense investment that will save the state millions of dollars in future
costs."
"Since
the foundation for success in school and life is built in a child's
first five years, it is critical that we give every child in
Alabama an opportunity to succeed in kindergarten and beyond," said Bob Powers,
president of The Eufaula Agency and a co-chair of the Alabama School
Readiness Alliance's Pre-K Task Force. "Research shows that children
that attend Pre-K are more likely
to graduate from high school college- and career-ready. We look forward
to working with Gov. Bentley and others throughout this legislative
session to set a blueprint for legislators to follow."
For
more information about Alabama's First Class Pre-K program, the Alabama
School Readiness Alliance Pre-K Task Force, and to read the Task
Force's full set
of recommendations to expand access to First Class Pre-K while
maintaining the program's high quality, please visit www.alabamaschoolreadiness.org.
