Priority 1 Invest in Early Childhood Education From 2021 to 2022, the number of children in Washington living in poverty grew by nearly 200%, from approximately 64,000 to 186,000. Research has shown that the effects of childhood poverty extend not only to early learning readiness; it also impacts lifelong outcomes with regard to educational attainment and earning potential. From 2021 to 2022, the number of children in Washington living in poverty grew by nearly 200%, from approximately 64,000 to 186,000. Research has shown that the effects of childhood poverty extend not only to early learning readiness; it also impacts lifelong outcomes with regard to educational attainment and earning potential. For this reason, participants in the CWU convening coalesced around the need for universal pre-kindergarten (pre-K), with assurance of competitive salaries for all K-12 educators, particularly those serving poverty-impacted schools. This commitment would: • Enable all families who want to enroll their child in a publicly funded, pre-kindergarten care • Provide important learning, social-emotional development, and other beneficial factors for children’s long-term development and success • Equip families with greater flexibility and access to pursue educational and workforce goals that benefit their entire household To properly carry out this initiative and deliver results, we must: • Develop a profession-ready and sufficiently sized workforce • Elevate training and professional development of pre-K workforce to meet the diverse needs of the state • Make policy changes at the state level to assure a vibrant educational workforce that leads to a strong educational foundation
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