Will continue commitment to Maryland's children and working families
Baltimore, MD -- Governor O'Malley joined with members of the Maryland Family Network and other community advocates to announce a new early childhood education plan.
Governor O'Malley said, "Science tells us that 90% of a human's brain development is completed by age 3. Early childhood education could not be more important for Maryland's future--for education, for our workforce, for jobs, for our ability to compete and win in the global economy."
During the next legislative session, Governor O'Malley and Lt. Governor Brown will convene the Forward Ahead Summit on Early Care and Education to build on existing initiatives and continue to move forward on early childhood education.
The Governor acknowledged the importance of partnering with experts in the field. He said, "We have heard your voices and taken your advice about early care and education. And we want to hear more from you--and we hope you'll participate in our Summit. Together we can make a difference for Maryland's youngest children and their families"
Under the leadership of Governor O'Malley, Maryland has made progress on early education. Maryland is the only state in the country that administers a kindergarten assessment and this year, 78% of children entering kindergarten are evaluated as "fully ready" to learn by their teachers compared to 58% five years ago.
Governor O'Malley set big goals to reduce infant mortality 10% by the end of 2012 and under his leadership, Maryland is on track to become the first state in the country to end childhood hunger within its borders.
After Bob Ehrlich failed to provide adequate funding for the Infants and Toddlers Program, Governor O'Malley made the important decision to increase investment in the program by 71%--facilitating a 50% increase in the number of children receiving early intervention services since 2003.
These funds not only help prepare our children for the future, they also save taxpayers money. In the last fiscal year alone, because 44% of students exiting the Infants and Toddlers program were able to forgo expensive preschool special education, Maryland taxpayers have been able to save nearly $27 million.
After Bob Ehrlich chose to freeze the subsidy for the Child Care Subsidy Program allowing the number of children on the waitlist to outnumber those receiving services, Governor O'Malley made the important decision to increase investments in the Child Care Subsidy. As a result, today, there is currently no waiting list.
But while progress has been made, Governor O'Malley knows that more needs to be done. And that is why he plans to hold The Forward Ahead Summit on Early Care and Education in order to bring together experts from the early childhood education field so that we can continue to move forward for Maryland's children.
1 comment:
Ehrlich froze the program because it was broke!
When my child was in daycare PT(12 hrs a week) there was another client who did not work, with FOUR kids in the daycare,and with number 5 on the way and she paid less for full time care for 4 kids than I paid for 12 hrs with one kid.Its a good program but should only be available to women who work.
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