Today was supposed to be a happy day for me, the LEV team, and all of us who fought so hard on behalf of kids this session.
At LEV, George, Lisa, Chris and I have been working on including early learning in the revised definition of basic education for two years now. It started as a bit of a dream. An idea that had more research behind it than many current programs in the definition of basic education – but that seemed too difficult to pull off. We worried about political will, legality, funding, etc. etc. By some miracle, including early learning in the revised definition of basic education made it in the final recommendations of the Basic Education Finance Task Force AND through the legislature. How? Team work.
I’ll be honest, in the beginning the advocates were pretty silo’d. There were early learning folks and K-12 folks. But, something happened to change that and I believe it was this legislation. Suddenly legislative chairs at PTA Focus Day were prioritizing early learning in their letters to the editor and speeches, and early learning advocates were speaking to the importance of a robust definition of basic education. All advocates became P-16 advocates. This legislation forced all of us to understand the solid case for early learning. It became common sense – the program to invest in especially during a recession.
Today the Governor ended this work with a surprise veto that resulted in bitter disappointment. As I mentioned, I arrived to the Capitol this morning ready to celebrate promise and possibility. And, there is much to celebrate. She did sign most of the bill, which is a historic step forward. However, we also had some bad news in the form of a surprise announcement. Right before the signing we learned that the early learning component of the bill was going to be vetoed by the Governor. As people slowly figured out what was happening, you could hear people gasp in the hall and wonder what occurred. No one knew beforehand including key legislators or staff. We don’t really know what happened to cause this. I personally believe it had little to do with kids. Adults have a terrible way of getting in the way of progress for kids.
There is something I do know though. We won’t give up. Including early learning was a key component of the legislation. There is solid research and much of it that demonstrates that children who are at-risk, who receive early learning intervention, will do better in school and life. In short, high-quality early learning could prevent the achievement gap before it starts. As more children enter kindergarten ready to succeed, the pace of the entire class can pick up. The bar is raised for every child, which is what every child needs.
Including early learning for at risk children was a cornerstone of a “kid” focused bill. I am more than disappointed in Gov. Gregoire’s action today. I’m shocked, heartbroken, and ready to take action.
Stay tuned …
