All children deserve access to early education

All children deserve access to early childhood education, preschool and early intervention services, and high quality childcare. As a mother whose children have benefited from all of those, I feel strongly that all children, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status or location of the neighborhood, deserve access to the same.

In September, Washington’s members of Congress head back to Washington, D.C. When they do, I hope they will protect and expand investments in kids by funding Head Start, child care, and other early learning programs.

Parents know, and research proves, that investments in the earliest years deliver better outcomes for kids, families, and communities.

There has been bipartisan support to increase funding for early childhood programs — but more needs to be done.

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Washington) has long been a champion for kids. This year she worked for increases both for Head Start and for more affordable child care for all working parents.

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) recognizes that high quality early learning is an effective strategy to fight poverty. The budget in the House improved upon the Senate’s proposed investments.

Even with these increases, thousands of eligible families in Washington won’t be able to get their kids a high-quality early learning experience, because there’s not enough funding to meet the need. It shouldn’t be that way. I hope our congressional delegation will fight for our kids, and fight for more funding for early learning and child care.

This story was originally published September 28, 2016 at 11:30 AM with the headline "All children deserve access to early education."