How States Can Get Their Funding Right This Time Around

For decades school reform tactics have failed to bring about the change desired by conservatives and liberals alike.  It seems to be an issue that both sides are equally clueless about. Now that Obama has re-announced his Zero toFive plan, primarily to increase funding to early childhood education efforts, it is very important that both sides take a good look at past programs and realize that their successes stemmed from their commitment to building strong families and communities.  States should take advantage of the increased funding by recreating the preschool into a center for families to gain access to services that reduce the effects of poverty on a child’s academic success.

Obama plan will allocate $10 billion year to early childhood education efforts and also will require states to match federal contribution.  This plan gives states the power to decide where and how they will spend the money. Incorporating service centers into preschools is by far the best way to go. Many families that live at or below the poverty line have a difficult time accessing programs such as WIC, Medicaid, children’s health insurance, housing assistance, family counseling and unemployment insurance.

What is stopping families from getting the assistance they need? Reliance on public transportation makes it nearly impossible for families to make it to assistance office buildings during regular office hours or around their strict work schedules. Misinformation about eligibility and purpose of the services stops many families from even applying. Long application processes leave a lot of room for confusion as to the proper steps involved in filing paper work. The stigma associated with applying for welfare also discourages many parents from walking into the office buildings in the first place.

Situating all these services in the child’s preschool would motivate parents to seek out the appropriate benefits for their child. There would be no issue getting to the offices because they are located where the parents regularly drop off and pick up their child. The teachers and staff members that work with the child and his or her family daily would be able to identify what the exact needs of the family are, prepare an individualized plan for them, and direct them to the proper office.

Any well-meaning program like this could fail due to under staffing and inadequate staff training. States should aim to keep these offices running smoothly by maintaining a high level of employee qualification. Employees should have a strong command of English as well as whichever language is dominant in the area. The staff members should receive extensive training on the use of an operating system that links all the offices and programs together so that a single family may easily traverse multiple programs at once.

Other important services states should include directly inside the preschool facilities are health and nutritional services on site for the child. Studies show that children in lower income families often times have illness that go untreated for quite some time such as ear and respiratory infections, asthma, and malnutrition (Jensen). These children have a hard time concentrating on school when they are sick and possibly in pain. The teachers should receive the proper training to be able to recognize the signs of such illness. Once they recognize the symptoms onsite medical facilities should provide the proper treatment for these children.    

A year ago I worked for AmeriCorps Jumpstart for Young Children in one of USC’s partner preschools.  Although it was a small school right across the street there was a trailer set up as a mini doctor’s office.  If a child was having breathing difficulties due to pneumonia or asthma a teacher could take them across the street to receive a nebulizer treatment. The school also invited dental students to speak to the children and parents about dental hygiene. They provided the families with free dental examines and supplies.  The parents were very grateful to receive such services in an environment they felt comfortable in.


The preschool should be a place where children and their families feel free to learn and grow. For young parents especially it is important to be a part of a caring community. By situating financial, medial, and social services in the preschool states will create the much needed community setting and help stabilize the family unit. Once the family stabilizes parent involvement increases and this is what increases a child’s success in the classroom. The positive skills they learn as a family from the preschool center will follow the child throughout their school days and well into their adulthood. This is an effort that states should be proud and willing to fund.


Jensen, Eric. "How Poverty Affects Behavior and Academic Performance." Teaching with Poverty in Mind: What Being Poor Does to Kids' Brains and What Schools Can Do about It.