Courtesy of Illinois Action for Children

We applaud Governor Pritzker for his commitment to young children and their families, as demonstrated by the launching of the Illinois Commission on Equitable Funding for Early Childhood Education and Care. As longtime advocates for the education and healthy development of infants, toddlers and preschoolers, we greatly appreciate the recent investments made by the Pritzker administration and the General Assembly to improve early childhood services for kids and families across Illinois, investments that are key to securing the state’s future. We urge the Funding Commission to confront three major challenges facing our early childhood system, relating to:

Adequacy: Even with investments from both the state and federal government, the Illinois early childhood system is dramatically underfunded. Too many children are left unserved. There are major gaps in funding quality care and education programs, which we know lead to school readiness. Additionally, the workforce is greatly underpaid as compared to other similar professions. We urge the Commission to ensure full funding of high-quality care and early learning.

Equity: Far too many kids living in underserved communities, particularly children of color, lack access to high-quality early learning supports. Similarly, some areas of rural Illinois still face troubling service gaps. We must prioritize meeting the needs of children of color, low-income and rural children with increased access to high-quality early learning supports.

Stability and transparency: Early childhood funding is complex, and the burden to make sense of it often falls to providers and families. We urge the Commission to establish a system that provides greater financial stability, and accountability to ensure funding is meeting the needs of children. Currently, funding unpredictability for providers and families fuels uncertainty and a lack of confidence in the system.