You know your audience is engaged when a congressman’s explanation of how sequestration could impact Head Start funding draws gasps from the crowd.
More than 100 highly committed guests listened from the edge of their seats after braving a Boulder snowstorm Feb. 20 to hear an update on current efforts in early education from three major leaders, sponsored by Wells Fargo Advisors.
U.S. Rep. Jared Polis explained President Obama’s latest universal preschool proposal as well as the threats inherent in the looming fiscal crisis known as sequestration. State Sen. Rollie Heath walked us through the first major overhaul of the School Finance Act since 1994. And St. Vrain Valley Schools Superintendent Don Haddad described how the upstream investment his Boulder County district has made on students in the earliest years has begun to yield impressive results.
Community Foundation Board Chair Richard Garcia moderated the evening and also provided an update on Boulder Valley’s recently accelerated efforts to boost early learning opportunities for all children.
Momentum is building locally for a more focused effort on early learning opportunities, especially for children in poverty and English language learners. And it’s riding a tailwind of federal and state-level work, as the public servants at our recent forum showcased.
A recent Boulder County-wide convening of about 40 leaders across the sectors of education, government, business, faith and nonprofit organizations provided further proof of this momentum. The leaders heard a presentation from The Community Foundation’s Civic Forum on trends that concern us in education, chiefly that even as we pull out of the Great Recession, our child poverty rate is rising, and so is the number of children arriving at Kindergarten without the preparation necessary to succeed. The leaders discussed the issue and then unanimously agreed to commit to increasing the number of children ready for Kindergarten and reading by 3rd grade in our county.
We have committed collectively to improving these outcomes. Stay tuned for updates on where this exciting and important collaboration will lead.
