am a director of one of the largest child care centers in Iowa. We care for about 340 children, with 280 of those being under the age of 5. We strive to provide a high-quality programs to these children, with with little to no funding from the state.
In Gov. Terry Branstad’s Condition of the State this week, he said his budget plan would bring total K-12 spending to more than $3.2 billion, but “tough decisions” are needed in other areas of the budget to make this level of funding possible.
What about kids ages zero to 5? What type of funding increase will we see for our littlest learners?
K-12 funding is important, but studies show that if we don’t invest early in a child’s education, there are major consequences to that child’s later success. Children who don’t start kindergarten ready to learn sometimes never catch up. As a result, we will then need to continue to fund remedial programs to assist those children who begin school behind.