Editor’s note: The authors say they wrote this letter in response to the editorial by Norman Poltenson, entitled, “Pre-K is a failure, so let’s make it universal” in the Jan. 31 issue of The Central New York Business Journal.

There is overwhelming, research-based evidence that early education creates critical opportunities, especially for at-risk children living in poverty. Studies have shown that it more than pays for itself in long-term life improvement impacts, such as lower arrest rates and improved graduation rates, which were not measured by the [federal government’s] Head Start impact study.  

There have been numerous reports that actually demonstrate positive impacts from the Head Start program. Eliana Garces’ (UCLA) and David Deming’s (Harvard) rigorous studies determined that Head Start graduates were more likely than their peers to graduate from high school and attend college, and less likely to be unemployed. Another study by Jens Ludwig (University of Chicago) discovered that reduced childhood mortality was a result of Head Start participation, due to various early screening processes and appropriate treatment referrals.  

A researcher from the University of California learned that parents of Head Start attendees are much more likely to spend additional time reading to their children and taking them to museums, thus enhancing their overall educational experience. Even dads who did not live with their families ended up spending an extra day a month with their children. Alternate early education initiatives were found to have similar long-term positive outcomes.

As Nicholas Kristof points out in his recent New York Times article, on which much of this background information is based, preschool could be the only national issue that has a majority of support from voters of both parties. In our region, Senator [Kirsten] Gillibrand (D) and Congressman [Richard] Hanna (R) have joined together to sponsor legislation that expands access to pre-kindergarten programs nationwide.   

“High-quality early learning guarantees a reduction in spending on entitlements, welfare, and incarceration,” U.S. Representative Hanna said. “It also lowers obesity rates, helping to reduce health-care costs. By focusing on early education, we can begin to break the back of intergenerational poverty, producing more taxpayers and a more competitive America through a better-educated, growing middle class. We cannot guarantee every child equal success in life, but we can promise them the opportunity to be successful.”

According to economist and Nobel Laureate James Heckman, investing early in children’s lives yields the highest return in human capital, due primarily to future reduction in crime, increased earnings, and higher tax revenue. Every dollar spent on quality early learning can produce returns of $7 to $17, with the largest returns occurring between birth and third grade.

Investing in preschool today at approximately $8,000 per child per year is much more cost effective than paying $90,000 per child per year for juvenile-detention services later, or subsidizing living and service costs during a lifetime of unemployment. The United States trails most of the world’s developed nations when it comes to four-year-old preschool participation, and that seems to be reflected in our lackluster high-school completion. We rank as low as 21st for OECD countries (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) for high-school graduation rates, falling far behind the top five — Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Japan, and the United Kingdom. 

“If we expect our children to walk through the doors of our colleges and universities tomorrow, and succeed in our economy in the years ahead — we need universal pre-K,” said Sen. Gillibrand in a February news release.  “High quality early learning leads to strong cognitive, social, emotional and language development — key skills for a bright future.”

Peggy O’Shea
President & CEO
The Community Foundation of Herkimer & Oneida Counties, Inc.

Barbara W. Henderson
Vice President for Programs & Community Initiatives
The Community Foundation of Herkimer & Oneida Counties, Inc.

Brenda E. Episcopo
Executive Director
United Way of the Valley and Greater Utica Area