Gov. Chris Gregoire signed a bill into law today that will help working parents by reforming the state’s child care subsidy system, making it easier for children to remain with the same providers and for parents and the state to manage the aid.

Under the current system, Washington State reviewed parents’ eligibility for child care subsidies, on average, every three-and-a-half months, though it could wait up to six months, according to the Washington State Association of Head Start & ECEAP. This created regular headaches, and sometimes loss of support, for both parents and providers.

That’s because parents were often forced to resubmit paperwork every two months, three months or four months. Sometimes they lost their subsidies or saw co-payments rise even though their jobs and pay hadn’t changed. All of the reviews threatened to disrupt care, even though research shows continuity of care is a key element in early childhood development.

So, a group of mothers spearheaded an effort to change the system, writing letters to lawmakers and the governor urging them to extend the review period to every 12 months. The new law would do just that for qualified parents with kids in Head Start, Early Head Start and the Early Child Education and Assistance Program.

One of those mothers was Bianca Bailey. The mother of three could have used the change a year ago. After her husband had surgery, the family lost their child care aid, even though Bailey was at the same job with the same pay. To avoid disrupting their children’s care, the family was forced to take out payday loans and scrape together money to cover costs.

“At the time it created incredible hardships, not to mention astronomical interest rates” we paid, Bailey, who lobbied on behalf of the bill, said in an interview.

But, the changes will help more than parents. Providers will deal with a more consistent system, instead of worrying about parents continually losing support.

The longer review period may even save Washington State money by cutting administrative costs. Caseworkers will spend less time dealing with paperwork and reviewing families whose situations have not changed.

“They are wasting a lot of taxpayers’ dollars in doing that,” (unnecessary reviews), said Joel Ryan, executive director of the Washington State Association of Head Start & ECEAP.

The big winners are children in subsidized care because the longer review period should help prevent disruptions.

“Research from the Center on Law and Social Policy (CLASP) has found that children benefit developmentally from strong, sustained relationships with caregivers, and are harmed by frequent disruptions in care.  According to CLASP, children with higher numbers of changes in their center or child care providers has been shown to lead to less outgoing and more aggressive behaviors when they get older,” the WSA said in a press release earlier this year.

Still, the new law only creates a pilot program, though it also calls for a study on expanding the change beyond Head Start and ECEAP to all providers that accept state child care subsidies.

National News

• Governor's Budget: "Devastating" For Children In Need – 12/16/09, KCPQ 13
• Early education programs need sustained support – 1/15/10, The Leaf-Chronicle
• Candidates for Governor Split on Expanding Pre-K – 1/14/10, Nashville Public Radio
• Education magazine ranks Md. No. 1 – 1/14/10, The Baltimore Sun
• Experts Urge Earlier Start to Teaching Science – 1/13/10, Education Week
• An early start, a big step ahead – 1/12/10, The Philadelphia Inquirer
• Expand pre-k and invest in the future – 1/11/10, Mobile Press-Register
• College to offer more in child care – 1/9/10, Rockdale Citizen

Washington State News

• Gregoire wants to save state services; tax hikes on horizon  – 1/12/10, The Daily Herald
• Washington lawmakers: Don’t skimp on kids – 1/8/10, The Seattle Times

Washington State News

• Governor's Budget: "Devastating" For Children In Need – 12/16/09, KCPQ 13
• VIDEO: Editorial Board Interview with State Education Leaders (DEL Director Bette Hyde and Charles Earl, executive director of the State Board of Technical and Community Colleges) – 12/15/09, Kitsap Sun
• Report stresses importance of early childhood education; urges lawmakers to implement crucial benchmarks – 12-13-09, Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal
• Governor's Balanced-Budget Plan Provides Plenty of Pain for Kitsap – 12/12/09, Kitsap Sun
• Letter to the Editor: Budget cuts would be detrimental –12/13/09, The Herald
• Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner mobilizes moms to fight for their rights  – 12/13/09, Seattle Times
• Paying for day care isn't child's play  – 12/13/09, Yakima Herald Republic
• Financial aid, all-day kindergarten would disappear under all-cuts budget  – 12/11/09, Wenatchee World

National News

• Redshirting: When should children start kindergarten? – 12/16/09, San Francisco Chronicle (CA) : Blog: The Mommy Files
• Cutting investments in children will do more harm than good – 12-15-09, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA)
• Opinion: In autism, medication is only a partial answer – 12/14/09,  The Boston Globe (MA)
• Editorial: Big benefits: Pre-k meal program not just a tool to fight hunger – 12/15/09, Cumberland Times-News (WV)
• BrightStars program evaluates R.I. child-care providers –12/10/09, The Providence Journal (RI)
• Does Texas Pre-K work? – 12/14/09, The Texas Tribune (TX)
• Editorial: Pre-k proves crucial to future academic success – 12/13/09, Glasgow Daily Times (KY)
  

Research/Policy

•   FY10 Funding for Federal Early Ed Programs – 12/15/09, New America Foundation: Early Ed Watch Blog

Washington education leaders unveiled a 10-year plan today that would build an early learning system that runs from pregnancy through third grade and could help the state compete for a bigger slice of federal education funding.

The ambitious draft covers everything from children’s health and nutrition to support for parents and teachers.

There is another reason for the 119-page blueprint. It could put Washington in a far better position to compete for billions of dollars in fresh and future federal early learning dollars. The Obama administration is pushing to expand investment in early education – it helped insert $2 billion to help poor families pay child care bills in the economic stimulus package – and more is contained in pending legislation to overhaul the U.S health care system and student lending.

“With a solid plan for advancing a systemic approach to early learning, Washington State will be in an advantaged position for capturing some of the new and significant funding coming from the federal government,” said Lynn Kagan, one of the nation’s leading experts on early education and co-director of the National Center on Children and Families at Columbia University’s Teachers College.

The challenge for states is that comprehensive early learning infrastructures may be key in winning these federal funds, in part because Obama made it clear the funds should largely go to proven strategies.

The draft’s goals are far broader than this, however, and build on years of past work. For example, a key goal is to break down walls between agencies responsible for early learning by uniting them under a coordinated strategy. It also would create a more seamless transition between early learning and the first four grades of school – a concept known nationally as Prek-3rd.

It encourages breaking down the barriers created by traditional silos based on children’s narrow age ranges, old funding patterns, different types of development (i.e., physical, mental, social-emotional, etc.), and the historic distinctions between the preschool and school years. – Plan for the Washington Early Learning System, 2010 – 2020, Draft, 12/1/30.

The changes won’t happen overnight, especially given the precarious state of the economy. In fact, the plan won’t even be finalized until late March. In the meantime, the public is invited to read, comment on and hold public meetings to discuss the blueprint. The plan actually has two parts: a long-term blueprint and recommendations for Gov. Christine Gregoire and the upcoming legislative session.

While the draft is ambitious, funding remains a concern. It would use federal and state money differently and more efficiently. It also introduced the idea of a public-private financing tool, though that idea is still developing.

But, if Washington doesn’t implement this plan, it may have a harder time winning federal funds that could become available as early as next year.

For more information:

• Statement.
• Draft plan.
• Recommendations to the Governor for Action in 2010.

Governors are still spending billions of dollars on pre-kindergarten in this recession – together pushing for a four percent increase next year – though some big states such as New York and North Carolina are cutting back, Pre-K Now reports today.

In its annual review of the pre-k funding landscape, the advocacy group found that four times as many governors want to boost or preserve their states’ commitments as want to cut those budgets.

“For FY10, 14 governors are proposing increases totaling nearly $150 million, including three introducing new programs in states that currently offer no state-funded pre-k,” “Leadership Matters: Governors’ Pre-K Budget Proposals Fiscal Year 2010.”

If this was a pass-fail test, Washington would receive a passing grade for holding funding flat.

“This year, however, with inflation rates low and state revenues in negative territory, flat funding can be viewed as a proactive effort to protect critical programs while addressing serious shortfalls,” “Leadership Matters.”

Washington State Head Start & ECEAP Association headJoel Ryan gives Gov. Christine Gregoire an A, partly because she recently backed a major expansion of the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program, and essentially preserved that initiative this year in a tough budget climate.

Even in this dismal economy, the 28-page report has plenty of good news.

“Among the biggest surprises of 2009 is the unprecedented level of new activity in three of the dozen states that still provide no state-funded pre-k programs. Recognizing the importance of investments in quality early education, the governors of Alaska, North Dakota and Rhode Island have all proposed new initiatives.”

This new funding recognizes the stark economic reality facing working families. States may be struggling to pay the bills, but parents are having a hard time paying for child care, the report says.

President Barack Obama helped parents and governors by sending them billions of dollars for early learning as part of the economic stimulus package. While hailing that investment, Pre-K Now says Obama needs to do more, such as create effective models and accountability standards.

“Further, existing policies must be revised and new ones implemented to better facilitate collaboration among federal offices and between federal and state agencies. Funding streams must be made flexible and readily accessible so that high-quality programs can blend various sources to ensure quality, avoid waste and maximize taxpayer dollars.”

Check out the full report and 11 separate state summaries: Alaska; Arizona; California; Georgia; New Jersey; New York; North Dakota; Ohio; Oregon; Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.