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State Early Childhood Policies |
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National Center for Children in Poverty: Early childhood is a time of great opportunity. For young children, it is a time when they will learn to walk and talk and build the foundations for future development. For policymakers, it is a time to improve the odds that young children receive the basic supports and opportunities that will promote their healthy development and school readiness. Compelling research supports the lifelong importance of early childhood development, and hard economic evidence shows that smart investments in early childhood yield long-term gains. Good health, positive early learning experiences, and nurturing families who are economically secure form the three-legged stool of positive early childhood development. Improving the Odds for Young Children uses this three-part framework to identify key policy steps that states can take to improve the odds for children's early success in school and in life. Access to state-funded prekindergarten is growing, but access to high-quality child care is still inadequate, and state child care licensing requirements are not promoting nurturing, high-quality care. Only eight states meet recommended child care licensing standards for toddlers, and only 14 states meet them for 4-year-old children. While more than half the states address the inadequacy of the minimum wage, less than half exempt a family of three from personal income tax when family income is below the federal poverty level (FPL). Most low-income parents are not eligible for public health insurance, and very few parents can afford to stay home with their newborn and establish a strong, nurturing relationship. The following four recommendations can guide policymakers, advocates, and researchers in future efforts to improve the odds of success for our youngest citizens. - Make policy choices that focus on the whole child. - Combine early childhood investments with investments in family economic security. - Increase access to critical supports and services. - Invest in infants and toddlers.
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