QUEST (Quality Early Education through Salaries and Training) is a comprehensive initiative to improve outcomes for children in Pennsylvania through recruitment and retention of qualified early educators. The goal is a fully-funded, well-financed system of Early Education and Care in the state that is accessible to all children who need it, offers quality programs and has well qualified and adequately compensated staff.
What's New/What's News:
Another Good Budget for Kids
As the fireworks were celebrating
our
history of independence, lawmakers were hammering out a state budget
that preserved Pennsylvania’s history making investments in early
education.
The bottom line is that even though State revenue was lower than
anticipated, early education programs and the children and families they
serve were spared any significant cuts.
Key facts about the budget:
Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts
will grow to serve
11,800 3 & 4 year olds with high quality pre-kindergarten, an increase
of 800 children from 07-08.
(In addition STAR 3
will be the
minimum
requirement
for the child care providers in PA Pre-K Counts starting in FY 09-10)
Increase of $11.4 million
Child care quality and access continues to grow with additional funds
for Keystone STARS (serving
175,000 children)
to enable providers to
earn more STARS and improve the school readiness of the children they
serve;
and growth
in
Child
Care
Works
to provide 235,000 children with access to reliable, affordable child
care,
serving an additional
2,600 children.
Increase of $51.22 million
Growth for Early Intervention
to serve 32,600 infants and toddlers and 44,900 preschoolers with
disabilities/ developmental delays, an increase of 1,450 more infants
and toddlers, and 1,480 more preschoolers
Maintenance of the current number of children participating in
Nurse Family Partnership, to
serve 3,960 families in 2008-2009
Funding for the Early Learning
Network to
increase
accountability and documentation of the positive impact of early
childhood programs on
Unfortunately, two programs did incur the state’s across the board
reductions of 1.3% -- the Head
Start Supplemental Assistance Program was cut by $520,000 (down from
$40 to $39.48 million); and the
Accountability Block Grant was cut by $3.575 million. (Hopefully,
the impact on the number of children served will be minimal.)
There is no question that advocacy efforts are making a difference for
children and families by improving the funding and the standards for
early childhood programs. Here are two things you can do to continue to
work for children:
1 -
Please
take some time to
thank your legislators and Governor Rendell for
their
continued investments in our children’s early education.
Click
here
for
a
sample
letter
and contact information.