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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 27, 2012 Media Contact: Meghan Moroney, ph: 415‐450‐1913, [email protected]
Law Enforcement Leaders Support HighQuality Early Education to Cut Crime and Save Money in California California Spends 10 Times More on Corrections than on Early Education
SAN FRANCISCO (March 27, 2012)—Law enforcement leaders today released a research report highlighting the fact that investing in high‐quality early education programs can save California taxpayers billions of dollar by reducing violent crime and lowering costs associated with corrections and other government‐funded services. New data show that California spends $7.8 billion on corrections to house, feed and supervise criminals, yet only a small fraction of that amount, $784 million, on high‐quality early education programs. The report shows that investments in voluntary high‐quality early education programs throughout California can save: • $10 or more for every dollar invested, with nearly half of the savings from reduced crime costs; • $1.8 billion in K‐12 education costs by helping children learn more effectively and reducing the need for children to repeat grades, including $900 million in K‐through‐12 special reduced education costs by lowering the number of children who need special education services due to behavioral problems and developmental delays. "We would not have to lock up so many criminals if we invested more in early education,” stated Riverside County Sheriff Stanley Sniff, an Executive Committee member of FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS California, a national anti‐crime organization of police chiefs, sheriffs, district attorneys and violence survivors, with 400 members in California. “Funding early education programs such as transitional kindergarten and state‐funded preschool is a wise investment that will pay off for years to come in reduced costs from crime and incarceration." New evidence published in the prestigious research journal Science from the two decade‐long study of the high‐quality Chicago Child‐Parent Centers shows that by age 26, those not in the preschool program were 39 percent more likely to have spent time in jail or prison than participating children. FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS California members across the state called for policymakers to protect funding for early education programs, such as transitional kindergarten and preschool, in this year’s budget. (more) 211 Sutter Street, Suite 401 San Francisco, CA 94108 Phone (415) 762-8270 Fax (415) 762-8271 www.fightcrime.org/ca
“As a long‐time supporter of high‐quality education programs, I am particularly concerned with the current budget proposal. These cuts would jeopardize early education for up to 8,000 kids in San Bernardino County alone,” said San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos. “In light of compelling research showing the effectiveness of early education, that’s a tough pill to swallow, especially when you consider how much money we could save on corrections in the long run.”
The Governor’s proposed 2012‐2013 budget would cut preschool spending by $180 million by eliminating 17,000 slots for low‐income 3‐ and 4‐year‐olds and reducing per student funding, after $70 million and another 17,000 slots were already cut in 2011. It also would repeal the requirement that schools provide transitional kindergarten programs to older 4‐year‐olds who miss the cutoff for kindergarten starting in 2012‐2013, denying 125,000 children the right to transitional kindergarten and denying schools up to $700 million in annual funding. Authorized by law in 2010 and required to be phased in starting in 2012‐2013, transitional kindergarten provides the first year of a two‐year kindergarten experience and critical early learning opportunities to students born between September and December who will no longer be old enough to enroll in traditional kindergarten. Transitional kindergarten presents a unique opportunity to provide a high‐quality and developmentally‐appropriate two‐year kindergarten program to 1.5 million children over the next decade and a half, at no additional cost to the state. The program will be funded by redirected savings resulting from smaller cohorts of students entering traditional kindergarten over the next three years as they move through the K‐12 system. While the Brown Administration has moved away from its proposal to completely eliminate transitional kindergarten, it still would create significant barriers to equal access to transitional kindergarten by allowing districts to choose whether or not to offer the program and requiring individual students to apply for waivers from school entry‐age deadlines, which would be addressed on a case‐by‐case basis. In Riverside County, up to $53.6 million in proposed preschool and transitional kindergarten cuts would impact up to 8,822 children. In San Bernardino County, up to $51.5 million in proposed cuts would impact up to 8,468 children. In Imperial County, up to $6 million in proposed cuts would impact up to 917 children. For the full report, more detailed local data, or to reach a local law enforcement official, please contact Meghan Moroney, ph: 415‐450‐1913, email: [email protected]. ###
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 27, 2012 Media Contact: Meghan Moroney, ph: 415‐450‐1913, [email protected]
Law Enforcement Leaders Support HighQuality Early Education to Cut Crime and Save Money in California California Spends 10 Times More on Corrections than on Early Education
SAN FRANCISCO (March 27, 2012)—Law enforcement leaders today released a research report highlighting the fact that investing in high‐quality early education programs can save California taxpayers billions of dollar by reducing violent crime and lowering costs associated with corrections and other government‐funded services. New data show that California spends $7.8 billion on corrections to house, feed and supervise criminals, yet only a small fraction of that amount, $784 million, on high‐quality early education programs. The report shows that investments in voluntary high‐quality early education programs throughout California can save: • $10 or more for every dollar invested, with nearly half of the savings from reduced crime costs; • $1.8 billion in K‐12 education costs by helping children learn more effectively and reducing the need for children to repeat grades, including $900 million in K‐through‐12 special reduced education costs by lowering the number of children who need special education services due to behavioral problems and developmental delays. "We would not have to lock up so many criminals if we invested more in early education,” stated Riverside County Sheriff Stanley Sniff, an Executive Committee member of FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS California, a national anti‐crime organization of police chiefs, sheriffs, district attorneys and violence survivors, with 400 members in California. “Funding early education programs such as transitional kindergarten and state‐funded preschool is a wise investment that will pay off for years to come in reduced costs from crime and incarceration." New evidence published in the prestigious research journal Science from the two decade‐long study of the high‐quality Chicago Child‐Parent Centers shows that by age 26, those not in the preschool program were 39 percent more likely to have spent time in jail or prison than participating children. FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS California members across the state called for policymakers to protect funding for early education programs, such as transitional kindergarten and preschool, in this year’s budget. (more) 211 Sutter Street, Suite 401 San Francisco, CA 94108 Phone (415) 762-8270 Fax (415) 762-8271 www.fightcrime.org/ca
“As a long‐time supporter of high‐quality education programs, I am particularly concerned with the current budget proposal. These cuts would jeopardize early education for up to 8,000 kids in San Bernardino County alone,” said San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos. “In light of compelling research showing the effectiveness of early education, that’s a tough pill to swallow, especially when you consider how much money we could save on corrections in the long run.”
The Governor’s proposed 2012‐2013 budget would cut preschool spending by $180 million by eliminating 17,000 slots for low‐income 3‐ and 4‐year‐olds and reducing per student funding, after $70 million and another 17,000 slots were already cut in 2011. It also would repeal the requirement that schools provide transitional kindergarten programs to older 4‐year‐olds who miss the cutoff for kindergarten starting in 2012‐2013, denying 125,000 children the right to transitional kindergarten and denying schools up to $700 million in annual funding. Authorized by law in 2010 and required to be phased in starting in 2012‐2013, transitional kindergarten provides the first year of a two‐year kindergarten experience and critical early learning opportunities to students born between September and December who will no longer be old enough to enroll in traditional kindergarten. Transitional kindergarten presents a unique opportunity to provide a high‐quality and developmentally‐appropriate two‐year kindergarten program to 1.5 million children over the next decade and a half, at no additional cost to the state. The program will be funded by redirected savings resulting from smaller cohorts of students entering traditional kindergarten over the next three years as they move through the K‐12 system. While the Brown Administration has moved away from its proposal to completely eliminate transitional kindergarten, it still would create significant barriers to equal access to transitional kindergarten by allowing districts to choose whether or not to offer the program and requiring individual students to apply for waivers from school entry‐age deadlines, which would be addressed on a case‐by‐case basis. In Riverside County, up to $53.6 million in proposed preschool and transitional kindergarten cuts would impact up to 8,822 children. In San Bernardino County, up to $51.5 million in proposed cuts would impact up to 8,468 children. In Imperial County, up to $6 million in proposed cuts would impact up to 917 children. For the full report, more detailed local data, or to reach a local law enforcement official, please contact Meghan Moroney, ph: 415‐450‐1913, email: [email protected]. ###
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