Hot Topics
Voters Give California Proposition 1D Thumbs Down
Proposition 1D, the California ballot measure that would have temporarily redirected up to 50 percent of the tobacco tax revenue dedicated to early childhood programs to plug holes in the general budget, went down in defeat this week. Early childhood became a target as the state's economic circumstances grew dire and political leaders recognized that California's First 5 Commission, which receives the tobacco tax revenue, currently have about $2.5 billion in unspent funds. California faces a deficit in the neighborhood of $20 billion.
Latest New Jersey Budget Cuts Pre-K Expansion
New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine's most recent budget proposal eliminates $25 million that was dedicated to expanding state pre-K. Until now, Corzine had spared the pre-K expansion initiative from the budget knife, but he said the widening deficit the state faces necessitated postponement of the expansion and elimination of property tax rebates for most homeowners.
Washington Governor Vetoes Pre-K Portion of State Education Bill
Chris Gregoire, the pro-pre-K governor of Washington state, surprised many when she vetoed the portion of the state's new education reform bill that focuses on preschool education. Gregoire, who had informed preschool advocates in advance, said she vetoed the pre-K part because it targets state pre-K to at-risk children only and doesn't recognize that all children in Washington deserve state-funded preschool education. She said provision of state pre-K requires further study.
New Study:
Preschoolers' Language Development Influenced by Classmates' SkillsUniversity of Virginia researchers have found that children’s abilities to speak and understand words developed faster when they were with classmates with better language skills. Andrew J. Mashburn and colleagues studied preschoolers in more than 450 pre-K classrooms in 11 states, testing their skills in receptive language and expressive language at the start and end of pre-K. The authors say that while the positive effects from classmates were small, they have implications in such areas as the desired composition of children in pre-K classrooms and how much emphasis language curricula place on teacher-managed instruction. The article appears in Child Development, Volume 80, Issue 3.
Melendez de Santa Ana Nominated for Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary EducationPresident Obama has nominated Thelma Melendez de Santa Ana to serve as Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education. The nominee is currently the superintendent of the Pomona Unified School District in California. Over her career she has served in various roles, including as a bilingual teacher, elementary school principal, and executive at the Stupski Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to education reform and innovation. Melendez de Santa Ana will oversee a number of programs that intersect with early education.
New on nieer.org
Ted Kennedy Talks with Preschool Matters about Challenges in Early Ed Senator Ted Kennedy is our Newsmaker in the issue of Preschool Matters just off the press. He talks about investing in a more coherent system of early education, the federal role in it, and bi-partisanship.
Other articles in the new issue include:
• Can State Pre-K Be Saved?
• Illinois: Building a Better ECE System
What Leads to Literacy?
• Discoveries: Predictors of Peer Victimization in Preschool
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