Photo: Kate Samp for Strategies for Children
Writing recently in The New York Times, University of Massachusetts economist Nancy Folbre offers a good round-up of the economic case for high-quality early education. “Why then,” she asks, “hasn’t the business community thrown more of its political weight behind increased public support for early childhood education?”
With business leaders from around the country set to gather in Boston later this week for the National Business Leader Summit on Early Childhood Investment, we hope that they will show her that business, indeed, is willing to throw its weight behind funding early childhood education. The Partnership for America’s Economic Success, which is managed by the Pew Charitable Trusts, is convening the summit.
In a provocative column – “Will business buy into early childhood education?” – Folbre cites the recently released study from Chicago’s Child-Parent Center Education Program as well as “Investing in Kids,” economist Tim Bartik’s 2011 book. “Enthusiasm crosses the political spectrum,” she writes. “James Heckman of the University of Chicago, a Nobel laureate who is hardly a big advocate of government spending, is famously insistent on the benefits of early childhood education. Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve Board is another strong supporter. Last year, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce published a report, ‘Why Business Should Support Early-Childhood Education,’ that includes a summary of efforts by some chamber groups to promote early childhood education on the state and local level.”
Could it be, Folbre wonders, that the information hasn’t sunk in or that business doesn’t want to wait for longer-term results? Or maybe many businesses are looking overseas for tomorrow’s skilled workers, not here in the U.S.
Noting that “the social rate of return on investments in children is high for taxpayers,” she concludes with a plea. “Many business owners are citizens and taxpayers who care about the well-being of the next generation. Those are the ones who will buy in to early childhood education. They had better do it soon.”
Eye on Early Education focuses on the twin goals of ensuring that Massachusetts children have access to high-quality early education and become proficient readers by the end of third grade.
Economist Arthur Rolnick has sent a copy of the note he sent to Nancy Folbre after her column appeared in The New York Times. I’m posting it with his permission.
Dear Professor Folbre,
Thank you for the citation in your recent NYT article on early childhood education (ECE) and the business community. I just wanted to bring to your attention that the Minnesota business community is investing in ECE and leading a statewide effort to bring high-quality ECE to all our at-risk children. This initiative is well documented on our web site (www.melf.us). Please note that our board of directors are the CEOs of several of the top corporations in Minnesota. We even had the support of our former Governor, Tim Pawlenty.
Art
Arthur J. Rolnick
Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the Human Capital Research Collaborative
Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs
University of Minnesota
Interestingly, the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce recently included early education reform in its legislative scoreboard. As Politics in Minnesota reported:
“The main obstacle keeping many House GOPers from earning a perfect score was a vote in favor of an on-the-fly floor amendment from GOP Rep. Mark Buesgens, which stripped some early education programs supported by the group from the K-12 Finance Bill.”
So, there you go: A business group “willing to throw its weight behind funding early childhood education.”
http://www.mnchamber.com/action-center/elections-center/legislative-voting-records.cfm
Wow, we are facing economic cuts in funding for the early childhood education sector in New Zealand.
Investing in kids is a great term! I hope our politicians could learn a thing or two and adapt.
Great post! Thanks