Educational Justice?

Community Dashboard of 2011 Key Socioeconomic Indicators of Austin and Travis County
Source: http://www.cancommunitydashboard.org/index.php
Community Dashboard Indicators assert several current findings related to early education and childhood risk factors for vulnerable populations, notably only 52% of AISD children were reported kindergarten ready in 2010.

Kindergarten readiness was quantified through testing competence levels in social-emotional development, language and communication, and emerging literacy and mathematics. If was found that students qualifying or enrolled in free or reduced price school lunches “were less likely to be kindergarten ready” than children enrolled in pre-kindergarten curriculum. The United Way Success by 6 programs posits that many low-income children are two years behind their peers developmentally when they show up for school. The developmental disparity has been cited to lead to an increased risk of developing a host of challenges and problems in the future. Further, research shows that once a child reaches 8 years of age some delays tend to be intractable to remediation strategies. The take-home message appears to be loud and clear, enrolling children in pre-school programs helps to maximize their long-term educational gains.

The current 82nd legislative budget proposes to stop funding to the following programs:
Pre-kindergarten Early Start (PKES) grant program (net-loss $104.3 million a year)
-Currently serves 102,000 preschoolers
Early Childhood School Readiness Models (TEEM) (net-loss of $11.7 in federal funding)
-Texas A&M found that for every $1.00 invested in the TEEM there is a $3.50 yield
Texas Higher Education and Early Childhood Development Project (net-loss $1 million)
-Program which helps day-care centers to employ a highly qualified staff

Click below for a related video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qONMpYRE00

Yet, in the Texas 82nd proposed legislative budget severe cuts have been made to the very programs research cites as imperative for educational success of Texas children. Within the budget released through the House of Representatives a total loss of $249 million was cut from proven pre-K reform efforts.

In this following video President Obama alludes to strengths derived from early childhood education:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMRazyRAXhE&feature=related