President and CEO of The Connecticut Project Action Fund Garth Harries reacts to Governor Lamont's call for increased funding for early childhood education in Connecticut.
The following is a quick reaction from Garth Harries, President and CEO of The Connecticut Project Action Fund:
"Governor Lamont is absolutely right that Connecticut needs to invest in expanding early childhood education opportunities for everyone, especially low-income families, and we applaud him for continuing to prioritize the ongoing childcare crisis. The challenging truth is that while Governor Lamont’s proposed $43.4 million investment is important, it doesn’t expand access to childcare – and in particular, it doesn’t close the gap for the thousands of children no longer eligible for kindergarten due to the state’s new kindergarten eligibility law. The state needs to give working families immediate relief by delaying the kindergarten eligibility law's implementation for a year, investing a minimum of $50 million more in early childhood education subsidies each year once that law goes into effect, and increasing investments in additional early childhood education access overall. Working families are feeling the pressure of trying to pay for childcare while making ends meet, and the state needs to step up to help them."
