We have a lot of research on early learning’s long-term returns – more college degrees, better salaries and higher homeownership rates – but a new report says there are more immediate reasons for states to invest in preschool and pre-kindergarten.

Among those reasons is that quality early learning offers big savings by supporting prepared students and parents, the Partnership for America’s Economic Success suggests in its issue brief.

For example, home visiting and mentoring programs alone could

• “…Help decrease by half the incidence of low-birthweight births, saving between $28,000 and $40,000 per low-birthweight birth averted…”“
• “…Save states collectively some of the $33 billion in annual child abuse- and neglect-related costs, such as hospitalization and law enforcement.”

The report’s argument for quality pre-k is also interesting, suggesting it leads to better kindergarten students, which in turn boosts teachers’ effectiveness, reduces staff turnover and cuts special education costs.

Quality pre-k savings also include:

• “Parents whose children are in reliable, quality care work more productively and rely less on public assistance. Those who are out of work can search for jobs and participate in training programs.”
• “States generate roughly two dollars in local spending for each federal childcare dollar spent. These “multiplier effects” range from 1.92 in Ohio to 2.08 in California and 2.17 in Pennsylvania.” (See the report for research sources. The Partnership for America’s Economic Success, which released the report, is a division of The Pew Center on the States.)

On the heels of this issue brief, Michigan’s school superintendent released another report today saying school readiness investments over the last 25 years saved the state $1.15 billion in 2009, Grand Rapids News reports.

Thanks to the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies and the National Institute for Early Education Research for finding this news.

The buzz on Capitol Hill these days is about a bill that would invest $10 billion in early education over ten years as part of a student loan reform bill, the latest big-ticket investment proposed for those age 0 to 5.

One of the interesting things about the legislation is how often quality is mentioned – nine times in this summary -  by lead sponsor and Education & Labor Committee Chairman Rep. George Miller. The bill would save nearly $100 billion by shifting student loans to a direct government lending program, and then spend $10 billion of that on President Barack Obama’s proposed Early Learning Challenge Fund, according to Rep. Miller. (I remember when I covered Congress and $500 million was a big deal.)

By 4 years old, children from low-income families are already 18 months behind most other 4 year-olds. From the start, education reform should include early learning, or we miss out on 5 critical years. A comprehensive range of high quality early learning opportunities from birth through age 5 is necessary to give children what they will need to grow and succeed. – “The Student Loan & Fiscal Responsibility Act.”

Here are principles Rep. Miller, D-Calif., proposed for using the $10 billion:

• Build an effective, qualified, and well-compensated early childhood workforce by supporting more effective providers with degrees in early education and providing sustained, intensive, classroom focused professional development to improve the knowledge and skills of early childhood providers.
• Best practices in the classroom by implementing research-based early learning standards aligned with academic content standards for grades K-3.
• Promote parent and family involvement by developing outreach strategies to parents to improve their understanding of their children’s development.
• Fund quality initiatives that improve instructional practices, programmatic practices, and classroom environments that promote school readiness.
• Quality standards reform that moves toward pre-service training requirements for early learning providers, and adopting best practices for teacher-child ratios and group size.

The bill’s chances are cloudy because it’s still relatively early in the legislative session, an lawmakers often save heavy lifting for the final days.

Read more analysis about the bill here:

“Who Knew Student Loan Reform Could Mean So Much To Early Childhood,” The Early Ed Watch Blog, 7/15/09.

“Miller Proposes Major Student Loan Overhaul,” Politics K-12, 7/14/09.

In other news: An American family with two kids spends an average of $12,445 a year on child care, which eats up 14 percent of its annual income, Care.com reports. 
 

The cost of child care continued to outstrip inflation last year, with care often costing more than food and rent, a new report found.
Last year, the annual cost of center-based infant care reached as high as $15,895, while quality care at an accredited center hit $16,835, according to “Parents and the High Price of Child Care: 2009 Update.”

“The bottom line is that you get what you pay for,” Linda Smith, executive director of the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies, said in a statement. “And today’s economy only makes it that much harder for parents who are already struggling with the current cost of child care to afford the quality child care their children need and deserve.”

The cost of child care rivaled or topped other essentials. Parents, on average, spent more on child care fees than food in every region of the country, the report said. In fact, while the nation’s cost of living rose 3.8 percent last year, center care for a baby rose 4.8 percent and care for a four year old jumped 6.2 percent, the report said, relying on Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

New York topped the list of least affordable states for baby care, with Massachusetts the second most expensive, followed by Minnesota, Colorado, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana, according to the report. (Washington State ranked 13th.)

The report offered a few interesting recommendations beyond the demand for greater federal funding of child care grants, including a suggestion the early learning-friendly Obama administration could embrace.

“Requiring the Department of Health and Human Services in conjunction with the National Academy of Sciences to determine the cost of quality child care and report back to Congress.”

The report’s broader goal gets to the heart of the early learning issue: Are child care, preschool and pre-k parts of our commitment to public education or elements of a different and complimentary system?

The Virginia-based child care group suggests its position in another recommendation.

“Designing a system to help underwrite the cost of child care so that all families, not just wealthy families, can afford the cost of quality child care.”