Ready Nation/America’s Edge, a business organization working to strengthen business through better policies for children and youth, is inviting businesses to invest in preschool education – for their own economic success.
According to the United Way of Chester County, fewer than 1 percent of local children living at or near poverty attend Head Start or PreK Counts programs, and half the local children under 5 are not enrolled in a preschool or attend kindergarten. The Chester County Intermediate Unit operates nine Head Start programs in Chester County, but only 450 economically disadvantaged children participate each year.
Access to high-quality pre-k has both immediate and lasting economic benefits that extend far beyond the individual child, according to a new report from ReadyNation/America’s Edge. The study, which was commissioned as a research element of the Pre-K for PA campaign, found that for every $1 dollar invested in pre-k, the state’s economy would see $1.79 in spending and economic activity.
“If Pennsylvania funded pre-k for all 3- and 4-year-olds, that investment would generate $800 million in additional goods and services and create almost 28,000 new jobs,” said Sara Watson, national director of ReadyNation/America’s Edge.
In the five-county, southeastern Pennsylvania region, the report projects a $340 million investment in pre-k would generate $609 million in new spending – including $269 million outside the early education sector –translating to over 9,500 jobs. The return on every dollar that Pennsylvania invests in early childhood programs is due to a “multiplier effect” that outpaces even the robust boost seen in seven out of nine other major business sectors studied, such as retail trade and manufacturing.
“For business leaders, this study shows that there is a double benefit from investing in pre-k,” said Phil Peterson, co-chair of the business advisory committee of ReadyNation/America’s Edge and a partner in the Radnor office of AON. “We all know the long term benefits in reduced crime and social costs and increased employment and earning power, but this study shows that communities across Pennsylvania would see increased economic activity immediately as a result of expanding pre-k.”
The report examined two potential economic scenarios to model the possible outcomes: first estimating the benefits if Pennsylvania fully funded its existing Pre-K Counts program to cover all children from families earning up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level; and next expanding access to all unserved 3- and 4-year-olds regardless of income.
Local charitable organizations such as the United Way will likely use the study as they solicit corporate donations.
