Support amendment for early childhood education

Children in low-income families have one proven and effective lifeline: high-quality early education.

Research shows that strong preschool education programs can profoundly enhance early learning to effect long-term improvements in academic performance and social behavior benefiting both individuals and the broader community.

For too many of our state’s 4-year-olds, that lifeline isn’t available to them because their parents can’t afford it.

A proposal on the November general-election ballot seeks to permit public funds to be used for private early childhood education (i.e. preschool), in addition to an already-existing new pilot program for public early learning.

For states that already fund comprehensive early-education programs in the United States, most of them provide "mixed delivery," which is a term used for instruction through both private and public preschool schools. This builds capacity by tapping into all available and willing licensed classrooms in years versus decades. Hawaii must not remain one of the few states — fewer than 10 — that offer virtually no public funds for statewide preschool.

Our university is committed to training the high-quality early learning teachers needed in both sectors to fill positions, if our state can commit to further increasing access to quality programs in a meaningful way.

We see this as a natural relationship with our goals for higher education: Investing in preschool provides the proven groundwork for later success in school, improved graduation rates, and increased success in college and beyond.

Without passage of ballot question No. 4, however, we limit the options our state has to deliver high-quality preschool.

Moreover, it also would limit the ability of our state from supporting professional development opportunities for preschool educators.

That’s a loss for Hawaii’s keiki and for the state in general.

Passing the preschool amendment also sends a strong message to our federal partners that Hawaii is ready to advance its early learning goals. That has real ramifications, as Hawaii will have the opportunity to apply for the new federal preschool development grants being made available to states.

This federal grant requires high-quality standards to be implemented in all preschools, along with requiring preschool teachers to have bachelor’s degrees and having access to ongoing professional development.

Chaminade University is prepared to contribute to this effort by providing high-quality early childhood teacher-preparation programs and professional development opportunities for in-service teachers.

We believe that one of the key components to providing high-quality early childhood education in Hawaii starts with high-quality teachers. Our university has, for over 50 years, trained future teachers at every level and has a strong emphasis in early childhood education.

The current effort toward a private-public partnership to provide quality early childhood education has to be considered beyond our own needs and benefits; we need to look at the bigger picture of what will provide a better future for our children in Hawaii.

This isn’t a political or ideological obligation to the next generation; it is a moral obligation and mandate to provide our leaders with the option to expand early childhood education opportunities to our community.

We encourage Hawaii citizens to vote "yes" on the November ballot to ensure this key constitutional amendment is adopted.