Legislature(2007 - 2008)BUTROVICH 205
03/10/2008 05:00 PM Senate HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB149 | |
| SCR19 | |
| SB107 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 149 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SCR 19 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 107 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SCR 19-GOVERNOR'S SUMMIT ON EARLY LEARNING
5:23:44 PM
CHAIR DAVIS announced consideration of SCR 19.
SENATOR BILL WIELECHOWSKI, Sponsor, presented an overview of SCR
19, a concurrent resolution asking the legislature to examine
implementing the recommendations of the governor's summit on
early learning. He referenced a previous presentation by Best
Beginnings, which disclosed that Alaska was one of only 10
states awarded a grant in 2007 by the National Governors'
Association to hold a summit on early learning. Approximately
150 policy makers participated in that summit, and one of the
goals was to insure that Alaska's future economy would be
supported by an educated, productive work force. To that end,
the participants drafted a number of recommendations to insure
that all children, especially those most in need, had access to
quality early education opportunities.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI went on to say research demonstrated that
certain work force skills were taught most effectively to
children under 6 years of age. Research also showed that
critical brain development occurred most rapidly in those early
years. Based on that research, Alaska seemed to be short-
changing its' youngest learners and as a result, Alaskan
children were falling behind in key areas such as early language
and literacy, thinking and cognitive development, and basic
social skills. Recent studies showed that nearly half of Alaskan
children entered school unprepared to be successful learners.
Experts attributed this largely to a lack of available pre-
school education; Alaska was one of only 10 states without a
state-funded early childhood system.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI directed the committee's attention to
research results that were included in their packets. Study
after study documented the value of quality preschool education
in higher achievement test scores; significantly less grade
repetition; major reductions in special education placements;
substantially higher rates of high school graduation; dramatic
increases in college attendance; substantially fewer arrests and
much less reliance on public assistance. One of the most
extensive studies done in this area compared the performance of
low income children at ages 14, 15, 19, 27 and 40 who attended
preschool with those who did not. Even at age 40 the differences
in performance were staggering. Former preschoolers had a
greater rate of employment and higher earnings. According to
economists these factors combine to make returns from
investments in preschool far greater than those from most public
economic development projects. For example, the Federal Reserve
Bank of Minneapolis reported that for every dollar spent on
early education, society reaped $16 of benefit. He drew
particular attention to a page in that report entitled "Large
Return on Investment" that showed the return to society on
investment in preschool not only in terms of reduced spending on
public assistance, education and criminal justice, but in
increased collection of taxes.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI commented that support for early education
was strong, with 87 percent of Alaskans supporting state funding
for early education and child care according to a poll conducted
by the McDowell Group. Interestingly, more than three quarters
of Alaskans believed that early learning and child care were
more important to fund than support for local governments or
construction of new roads and highways; and almost two thirds
felt that funding for early education was more important than
funding for university education. Nationally, support for early
learning programs was growing rapidly; last year the Governor of
Illinois took steps to make his state the first in the nation to
provide high quality preschool for every 3 and 4 year old by
2011.
In summary, he said the sponsor substitute for SCR 19 called on
Governor Palin to thoroughly consider the recommendations of the
Summit on Early Education and to work closely with the
legislature to implement those recommendations as appropriate.
It was his intention to further the discussion about the
benefits of preschool and hopefully, come back to the committee
with a more concrete proposal next year.
SENATOR THOMAS asked Senator Wielechowski for a complete copy of
the report titled "High/Scope Perry Preschool Study to Age 40"
[by Larry Schweinhart of the High/Scope Educational Research
Foundation].
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said he would provide that to him.
5:29:29 PM
NANCY SCHOEPOEFER supported SCR 19 as a private citizen advocate
for the Best Beginnings Initiative. She said she had been
involved with Best Beginnings since February 2007. At that time
she was employed by Conoco Phillips Alaska Inc. (CPAI) as their
designated representative to Best Beginnings and, since retiring
from CPAI at the end of January, continued to be actively
involved in the program.
MS. SCHOEPOEFER said the Best Beginnings Initiative brought
numerous public and private providers to the table to, among
other things, look at implementing a quality rating and
improvement system, and to conduct a comprehensive public
engagement campaign to inform parents, extended families,
community members and businesses about the economic and social
return on investment of education during a child's early years.
She encouraged passage of SCR 19 and urged Governor Palin to
consider the recommendations of the Governor's Summit on Early
Learning and work closely with the legislature to implement
those recommendations.
ABBE HENSLEY, Executive Director, Best Beginnings, thanked
Senator Wielechowski for sponsoring this resolution. She said
that more than 150 Alaskans came together at request of Governor
Palin to come up with recommendations to address 3 goals:
1) All children, especially those most in need, would have
access to early literacy and learning opportunities in
their homes or in out-of-home settings.
2) Early learning services would be coordinated.
3) Parents, grandparents and extended families would have
needed support resources for their engagement in young
children's learning.
SENATOR THOMAS asked if Ms. Hensley and Best Beginnings
participated in the early learning summit.
MS. HENSLEY responded that Best Beginnings provided the staff
for that summit and was the glue that held it together.
SENATOR THOMAS asked whether she had any dissenting opinion; did
any group feel that the recommendations were not appropriate.
MS. HENSLEY explained that the way recommendations were arrived
at was through people meeting on specific topics in small
groups. Those groups then came together and provided
recommendations to the whole group and they voted on the top
recommendations. Although they didn't make it necessary for
everyone to agree on every recommendation, she believed that
there was consensus on the ones that made the final list.
SENATOR THOMAS asked if it was a fair statement that there was
not really any dissent.
MS. HENSLEY confirmed that it was and said that, although
participants might have disagreed on which recommendations were
more important, they did not disagree with the recommendations
themselves.
5:36:16 PM
MICHELLE BROWN, President and CEO, United Way of Anchorage,
thanked the committee for hearing this resolution and Senator
Wielechowski for bringing it forward. She said the United Way
Board of Directors comprised 25 community and business leaders,
all of whom very strongly endorsed this resolution and the
findings of the Governor's Summit on Early Learning.
The United Way had been studying the issue with community
partners for several years and concurred with the findings of
major business organizations that early learning was necessary,
not just for our youths' academic success, but for Alaska's
economic success in a global economy. As a consequence, the
United Way Board had made this one of their priorities and
invested considerable resources in the hope of developing a
strong public/private partnership for a comprehensive array of
proven quality early learning opportunities. They wanted to
develop a system that would allow families to choose the type of
opportunity that would work best for them, and believed that a
coordinated plan would allow them to accurately measure their
progress.
SENATOR THOMAS asked whether Ms. Brown found that her business
partners believed early learning was helpful to them in
recruiting and retaining employees.
MS. BROWN responded that they conducted workplace campaigns in
many different work environments; and in their discussions they
found that as people became more aware of the research into
early learning and the window to make a difference, they came to
see it as the key to the next generation work force. They also
expressed strong interest in having this array of services
because it provided better productivity in the current work
force if parents were not distracted by having to struggle to
find opportunities for their children.
5:40:35 PM
SENATOR THOMAS moved to adopt the proposed SSSCR 19 as the
working document of the committee. There being no objection, the
motion carried.
CHAIR DAVIS thanked Senator Wielechowski for bringing this
forward and commented that it was important for them to keep
this on their agenda because Alaska was no longer one of 10, but
one of 3 states without early childhood education legislation in
place.
5:41:53 PM
SENATOR THOMAS moved to report SSSCR 19, Version \E, from
committee with individual recommendations. Hearing no
objections, the motion carried.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|