Early Childhood in the News

Kendra Kielbasa, director of Smart Beginnings Greater Prince William, shared statistics on the number of children in Prince William who will enter kindergarten unprepared to learn.  She was joined by Dalena Kanouse, a member of the Board of Directors for Smart Beginnings Prince William, whose message centered on the business case for investing in early childhood education.  Dr. Mark Ginsberg, Dean of George Mason University’s College of Education and Human Development and VECF Board Member, addressed the importance of quality, affordable access to early childhood education for all children.

To read more about the Summit, visit the Prince William Chamber of Commerce article.

 

On April 23^rd, Smart Beginnings Rappahannock Area helped register 509 students at 37 elementary schools across three school divisions as Phase I of their “Ready Freddy” kindergarten registration promotion.  In August, Phase II will pilot a community kindergarten orientation day in one elementary school in each of the five school divisions.

To learn more, visit the Free Lance Star article.

 

A unique partnership with Kings Dominion and Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond resulted in the installation of early learning messages in the new Planet Snoopy area of the park turning it into a place where families can understand the importance of early childhood learning while riding rides and enjoying the park.  Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond helped launch the new Planet Snoopy on April 24, 2013. 

Click here for images of the early learning messages.

 

The Kensington School, a pre-school and child development center in Williamsburg, VA, recognizes the importance of quality early education by applying to participate in the Virginia Star Quality Initiative.  A new 2,000 square-foot expansion in January gave the pre-school, which serves children 6 weeks to age 5, additional capacity to serve families in their community.

Read Virginia Gazette article.

 

 

New York Times Economic Scene Business article by Eduardo Porter discusses Investment in early childhood education.

Read article.

 

VECF and United Way Virginia Highlands partner to build a regional system of support and operations for local Smart Beginnings Initiatives.  This new regional system was highlighted online at SWVA Today/Tricities.com.

View article here to learn more.

 

On March 19th, Smart Beginnings Virginia Highlands hosted an inaugural Pre-K Fair in partnership with United Way Virginia Highlands.  The fair served nearly 130 people who registered for Pre-K screenings in both Washington County, Virginia schools and Bristol, Virginia schools.  While the pre-screening appointments do not guarantee placement, it allows for speedier enrollment.

Read press release here to learn more about the Inaugural Pre-K Fair.

 

Tom Chewning's community endeavors - including his push for early childhood education - are highlighted in this Metro Business article.

Read the article here.  

In partnership with the Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Paul Koonce discusses how important early childhood development is to the region's economic prosperity.

Read the GRCC article here. 

Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's Chief Operating Officer, Sally Green, wrote an article on how early investment in childhood development helps kids and the Commonwealth.

Click here to read Sally Green's Op Ed

 

VECF made additional investments in four Smart Beginnings coalitions in December 2012.  Check presentations included: Smart Beginnings Hopewell Prince George ($112,500), Smart Beginnings Rappahannock Area ($186,933), Smart Beginnings New River Valley ($93,750), and Smart Beginnings Virginia Peninsula ($202,500).

Click here to read Hopewell Prince George Check Presentation article

Click here to read Rappahannock Area Check Presentation article

Click here to view New River Valley Check Presentation video

Click here to view Virginia Peninsula Check Presentation article

 

Three Smart Beginnings Coalitions recently received grant awards from VECF in support of their continued early childhood development efforts in their localities.  Check presentations made in November 2012 include: Smart Beginnings Appalachain Region ($90,000), Smart Beginnings Shenandoah Valley ($75,000), and Smart Beginnings Southside ($70,500).  Additional check presentations will take place in December for Smart Beginnings Hopewell Prince George, Smart Beginnings Rappahannock, and Smart Beginnings Virginia Peninsula.

Click here to read Appalachian Check Presentation Article

Click here to read Shenandoah Valley Check Presentation Article

Click here to read Southside Check Presentation Article

 

The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment technical team is exploring instruments and practices utilized in other states to determine the best tool(s) and methodology for Virginia. Assessment representatives from a number of local school divisions are assisting with the exploration, supporting the opportunity to identify practices that will be of most value to kindergarten teachers, school administrators and families. As well, the team understands the potential value of a more robust benchmark for entering kindergarteners to policymakers.

A working paper guides the team’s discussions (download pdf).

Recently, Catherine Scott Little (download a pdf of her bio) presented information to VECF’s board of directors and met with the KRA technical team to share valuable information about trends and practices in other states (download PowerPoint). 

Why is the development of these public-private coalitions so important? By forming effective partnership approaches, communities are able to imbed leadership, a team/network approach, and shared accountability to collective focus to ensure school readiness. Smart Beginnings communities have the structure, capacity, and will for a sustained, long-term effort to promote the school readiness of children, thereby laying the foundation for a strong workforce, healthy economy, and community prosperity. 
 
Since 2007, VECF has fostered the creation of 29 Smart Beginnings coalitions, covering more than 100 cities/counties and encompassing 87% of Virginia’s population. These coalitions are the cornerstone of the early childhood system in the state. VECF sets clear and consistent performance measures, documents gains and efficiencies, and works with coalitions to identify and track key indicators of school readiness at the child, school, and community level. 
 
Click the image below to download a pdf of the Risks and Results chart.
 

In January 2012, Kathy Glazer joined VECF as executive director. During the spring of 2012, the organization conducted a series of thoughtful strategy sessions and one-on-one meetings to examine its mission, goals, processes and outcomes, as well as to chart a course for the future.

With this plan in place, VECF will function as an innovative, collaborative and results-oriented entity and establish itself as the non-partisan steward and capacity builder for advancing school readiness in the Commonwealth.

Click here to download a copy of our strategic directions.

Click here to download a PowerPoint presentation of the plan. 

The Virginia Star Quality Initiative is expanding to the Danville region. Nine early childhood programs have volunteered to participate in this quality rating and improvement system. read more ...

In a recent CNN article, Professor Alison Gopnik explores the complicated minds of infants. She explains how science supports the need for improved early childhood systems and emphasizes that children learn through play.
"The scientific work on the way babies learn demonstrates that neglecting our youngest children is self-destructive. Our moral intuition ought to tell us it's just plain wrong." read more ...

CNN Money spotlights the struggles of twelve families as they deal with the rising costs of child care and preschool. In Virginia, the average annual cost of full time care for an infant is over $9,600.  read more ...

A new report promotes an increase in preschool enrollment worldwide. The analysis found that middle- and low-income countries could see a return of $6-$17 for every dollar invested in preschool. “Early childhood is the most effective and cost-effective time to ensure that all children develop to their full potential,” noted Patrice Engle, of California Polytechnic State University. read more ...

Experts agree that pre-k needs to be incorporated into our existing K-12 education system. This clip from MSNBC features Dennis Van Roekel, President of the National Education Association.  read more ...

Time Magazine's article summarizes progress that has been made surrounding early childhood education and the current state of pre-k. It also features the Pew Charitable Trust's recommendations for improving the nation's prekindergarten system. read more ...

A new report from Smart Start & the North Carolina Partnership for Children examines the crucial role that child care plays to the state's economy. Often overlooked, child care actually accounts for more jobs than nursing facilities and real estate.  read more ...

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan blogs about the importance of starting early for NBC's Education Nation. He explains what the Department of Education is doing now to improve early learning, and what is left to be done.  read more ...

Smart Beginnings Martinsville Henry County partnered with local health organizations to hold an event to promote school readiness. Local officials are working to make sure parents are aware of the kinds of skills their children need before they begin kindergarten. The event offered free developmental assessments for children and educated parents on local resources. read more ...

The NIEER blogs about a new research brief from Timothy Bartik and the Partnership for America's Economic Success, which explains how early childhood education supports business growth and job creation. This new research makes a strong case for both the short- and long-term benefits of quality early education programs for students, parents, employers, and taxpayers.  read more ...

Scott Hippert, President of the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, and Barbara Couto Sipe of Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond, appeared on CBS's morning show today to discuss school readiness.  read more ...

Once upon a time, in an era far, far away, children went to kindergarten to prepare for first grade. Kindergarten was their first school experience, their prep for elementary school. Now, children need to go to pre-school to prepare for kindergarten. read more ...

The president of Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children promotes early childhood investment as a fiscally responsible way to reduce deficits and generate long-term gains for children and taxpayers. Over a lifetime, children who are exposed to high-quality early learning will be healthier, more self-sufficient and less likely to enter the criminal justice system.  read more ...

The Virginia Star Quality Initiative is utilizing the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) to improve child care programs across the Commonwealth.
Gardiner and her staff have been trained to use the CLASS instrument to rate each of the centers, and use the information gathered to develop a two-year, quality-improvement plan and provide mentoring with the aim of raising future scores.  read more ...

On Wednesday, the Annie E. Casey Foundation released a national study on child well-being. Researchers found that  found that 14.7 million children are living in povety--2.5 million more than in 2000. Low-income children are more likely to suffer academically, economically and socially throughout their lives. read more ...

This weekend, families across the commonwealth will take advantage of the state's annual sales tax holiday to purchase back-to-school supplies for their children. But there's so much more to being ready for school — especially kindergarten — than walking into the classroom with a new outfit and backpack. read more ...

A Goochland child care provider was a member of a pilot program to improve child care services in home based settings. From last December through July 1, Helen Payne, who operates Glory Home Child Care Preschool in her home in western Goochland, was part of the Virginia Star Quality Initiative’s statewide pilot program. read more ...

Smart Beginnings Heartland, Smart Beginnings Northumberland Lancaster and Smart Beginnings Fluvanna Louisa received funding to ensure that children in these areas will enter school prepared and ready to learn. read more ...

You’d be hard-pressed to find a more solid case for the importance of good early education: A study published late last week by Science shows that attendance at the Chicago Parent-Child Centers – a program designed to extend from pre-k through 3rd grade in the inner city’s public schools – is connected to a person’s success in life 25 years later.  read more ...

Smart Beginnings Danville Pittsylvania hosted its first School Readiness Camp. The day camp is for children who did not attend preschool in order to teach them the skills they will need to start kindergarten. The coalition was able to offer this camp after receiving a $5.4 million grant from the Danville Regional Foundation earlier this year.  read more ...

The Dominion Foundation awarded a grant to support the Southwest Regional School Readiness Initiative of the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. The resources will be used to expand high quality early learning initiatives to ensure that young children in the Southwest Virginia region, ages 0-5, are well-prepared to be successful in school and, ultimately, in the future workforce.  read more ...

Children who participate in preschool programs funded through the Virginia Preschool Initiative improve their performance in kindergarten and first grade, researchers at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education have found.
The study, conducted by senior scientist Francis Huang and Marcia Invernizzi, Henderson Professor of Education, is the first peer-reviewed analysis of the effectiveness of the Virginia Preschool Initiative program. Created in 1996, the program provides programs for at-risk 4-year-olds that include preschool education, health and social services, and transportation. read more ...

A recently released study of 1,000 poor children who benefited from Chicago’s Child-Parent Center Education Program (which includes intensive preschool, parent training and support for students through third grade), suggests that every dollar spent on the program yielded nearly $11 to society, including increased tax revenue and reduced spending on child welfare, special education and grade retention. read more ...

Smart Beginnings Western Tidewater held a community breakfast at Paul D. Camp Community College last week. At the event, Ellen Couch, executive director, explained the importance of investing in early childhood and reported on the coalition's many accomplishments from the past year. read more ...

A new brief from the Harvard Family Research Project highlights promising practices in Virginia and five other states. The strong efforts of Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond are summarized in this paper, which provides recommendations to policymakers for supporting these innovations.

Download a pdf of the brief here.

"Given that early social performance and academic achievement are predictors of later school success, it is imperative that children get off to a good start in kindergarten. In this brief, Christine Patton and Justina Wang, from Harvard Family Research Project, look at ways of helping to make the transition into kindergarten a positive experience that will serve as a foundation to help children reach their full potential throughout their school years. The brief highlights promising practices in six states—New Jersey, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, Virginia, and California—where local- and state-level leadership support a variety of initiatives to ensure successful transitions into kindergarten." 

The Virginia Early Childhood Foundation won a First Place trophy in the national 2011 Nonprofit PR Awards sponsored by PR News, a provider of media relations tools and tactics for professional communicators. The entry, VECF Reaches New Audiences with Strategic PR, was awarded top honors in the “PR on a Shoestring” category. read more ...

An article in the Huffington Post explains why budget cuts for early childhood programs are not in the best interest for our nation. 'Dr. Heckman may say it best, "It is a natural reaction to cut spending when faced with a budget deficit. Make no mistake, reducing spending in some areas in necessary and warranted. However, when one has dug themselves into a hole, the solution is not to stop digging as much as to start digging the hand and toe holds that facilitate climbing out. Investing in early childhood education is that hand and toe hold." read more ...