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District seeking donors for First Steps
Washtenaw
Supporters of early-childhood program seek to fill state funding
gaps
by Peri Stone-Palmquist, Ann Arbor News, August 26, 2002
For more articles on disabilities and special ed visit
www.bridges4kids.org.
Washtenaw County voters won't be asked to raise their taxes to
support an early-childhood program in the near future, but
local school officials hope residents and businesses will dig
into their pockets anyway.
Why? They say programs targeting children up to 5 years old
and their parents are essential to improve student
achievement.
Research suggests early intervention increases developmental
and educational gains and improves family dynamics. And
children who participate in such programs need fewer special
education and social services later in life.
"It's really a wise investment," said Washtenaw Intermediate
School District Superintendent Bill Miller.
He's hoping others will agree. Donations, it turns out, will
be a crucial component of a plan to keep First Steps Washtenaw
afloat.
With grant money slashed in the economic slowdown, state
funding trickles dry in December 2003. And a plan to support
the program through a 0.25-mill countywide property tax was
blocked by Washtenaw County Commissioners earlier this month
when they voted against putting the millage on November's
ballot.
The tax would have raised $2.8 million a year and cost the
owner of a $200,000 home with an assessed value of $100,000
about $25 a year.
First Steps supporters could go back to the commissioners with
a broader proposal to fund early-childhood programs. But even
if a millage is passed, other funding sources will be needed.
Still, First Steps supporters say the program's future is
strong.
The year-round program in each of the county's 10 school
districts is open to all Washtenaw County parents with
children ages 0-5, and includes play groups, home visits,
developmental screenings, educational events and referrals.
In its first year - June 2001 through June 2002 - 1,463
children in 1,094 families were served. And First Steps
coordinators say the goal for the next year is to reach even
more families.
Margaret Goodly, WISD's supervisor of early childhood
services, said one goal is to build stronger partnerships with
hospitals to let parents of newborns know from the start about
First Steps offerings.
Program coordinators also want to reach out to family shelters
and more at-risk families. But benefits can be realized by
more than at-risk or high-poverty families, Goodly said,
emphasizing that First Steps is for all families.
Research that Goodly and others point to shows that the rate
of human learning and development is most rapid in the
preschool years. Brain research shows optimal windows for
developing emotional control, social attachment, vocabulary,
math, logic and motor development occur in the first five
years of life.
A long-term study conducted by the High/Scope Educational
Research Foundation in Ypsilanti showed that adults born in
poverty who participated in a high-quality, active learning
preschool program at ages 3 and 4 have half as many criminal
arrests as those who didn't and higher earnings and property
wealth.
They also scored higher on reading, math and language
achievements tests at all grade levels, showed a 50 percent
reduction in the need for special education services through
the end of high school and showed fewer antisocial or
delinquent behaviors outside of school.
Over the lifetime of those adults, the public is receiving an
estimated $7.16 in tax dollars for every dollar originally
invested.
Despite the documented benefits, most districts are already
cash-strapped and launching an early-childhood program isn't a
top priority. But in March 2001, the state gave Parent
Involvement and Education Program grants to more than 20
intermediate school districts.
Washtenaw County got $2.4 million to fund First Steps for last
year and this year, but by this summer, it was clear a third
year of funding wasn't coming, said Peter Eckstein, an Ann
Arbor resident who serves on the First Steps Washtenaw
steering committee.
He said he had learned about a county tax in Florida that
supported early-childhood services and brought up the idea
with the steering committee.
With no clear consensus, no official action was taken by that
committee, but Eckstein and other like-minded members started
meeting and in July approached the county about a millage
proposal for November's election.
With that proposal nixed, Eckstein said the committee will
start discussing alternatives next month. Miller said First
Steps supporters also hope state funding will be restored
after the November election ushers in new leadership.
"Ultimately, long-term funding should be from the state,"
Miller said. "It needs to be statewide to really make a
difference."
Peri Stone-Palmquist can be reached at (734) 994-6835 or
pstonepalm@annarbornews.com
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