Now is the time to accelerate pre-K progress. Coronavirus landscape reinforces need.
This op-ed originally appeared in the Clarion-Ledger on April 26, 2020.
Life never seems to follow a straight line.
Six months ago, the Mississippi economy was moving along and all signs pointed to new — read, unallocated — money in the budget for the 2020 legislative session. At last, Mississippi would have money for all those things we know we need but have been putting off.
Then, the juggernaut of the coronavirus plowed right over all of us.
Like many parents of young children, I spent the week of March 16 in a daze. School was canceled and my two small kids were home while I was trying to work. My husband was still going into the office, and I felt the weight of everything falling on top of me all at once — my full-time job advocating for Mississippi’s kids, my other full-time job as a mom, and a series of new full-time jobs as teacher, infectious disease prevention coordinator and quarantine prepper. I was not the only one facing these challenges. On my staff alone, three of the four of us have young children and are trying to patch together time for work. Friends and colleagues with jobs and children or other caretaker responsibilities are having an equally difficult time. Every day has felt like running a marathon at a sprinter’s pace, often just to stay in place where I started. As the exhaustion bears down, I have also never felt so grateful to be so slammed: I feel lucky just to have a job for a little while longer.
Yet, in the rare quiet moments of that first week, my heart was breaking for Mississippi’s future. 2020 is the year we were going to win the largest growth in funding for state pre-K since the program began seven years ago. Pre-K is an investment in children for the long term, one whose effect can be seen immediately but is not fully realized until children become adults. In this time of moment-to-moment crisis, would our leaders still see the value in building better citizens for tomorrow?
Then, something remarkable happened. I saw people far and wide gain a greater appreciation for how indispensable early childhood care and education are. I saw childcare workers called critical and teachers called heroes. I saw it finally dawn on people who haven’t had to make it as the head of a young family in the 21st century that pre-K is not an “extra;” it’s essential.
Mississippi’s Early Learning Collaborative Act is not only our state’s pre-K program; it’s the backbone of Mississippi’s commitment to the education and care of young children. Our voluntary program, which includes childcare, public schools, and Head Start, provides education that meets the needs of families and 4-year-olds within their community. It’s also one of the best pre-K programs in the country.
Just this month, the National Institute for Early Education Research announced that Mississippi is one of only four states in the country that meet all 10 of their benchmarks for quality pre-K programs, an enormous accomplishment.
No prosperous future can happen without services that support parents going back to work. Nor can a prosperous future happen without an educated population. Pre-K perfectly meets both of these needs. It provides a safe and warm atmosphere for kids during the work day while also ensuring they receive a strong and age-appropriate academic program and those important socio-emotional skills to cope with a changing environment.
Now is not the time to wait and see. Now is the time to accelerate progress in Mississippi by passing and funding the pre-K bill waiting in the House. Parents need to work. Children need a great start in life. Mississippi needs pre-K now.
Rachel Canter is the executive director of Mississippi First. She lives in Jackson with her husband and two young daughters.
Related Posts
Mississippi’s Early Learning Collaboratives (ELCs) are #1 in the country for their high-quality pre-K programs. The ELCs currently operate in 40 communities and serve over 6,000 students. ELCs involve many partners, including school districts, Head Start programs, and licensed childcare providers. These partners commit to working together to provide high-quality pre-K to Mississippi’s four-year-olds. Despite our […]
Takisha Bishop, a business owner and childcare provider in Greenwood, MS, discusses the impact of the losing voucher students on her business and community.
Mississippi First is continuing its campaign to elevate the voices of real Mississippians who are highlighting the urgent childcare needs across our state. High-quality childcare is essential for children, working families, and our state’s economic future—but today, too many Mississippi families struggle to access or afford the care they need. Our video series spotlights real […]
Mississippi First is continuing its campaign to elevate the voices of real Mississippians who are highlighting the urgent childcare needs across our state. High-quality childcare is essential for children, working families, and our state’s economic future—but today, too many Mississippi families struggle to access or afford the care they need. Our video series spotlights real […]
Mississippi First is launching a new video campaign calling for increased appropriations to Mississippi’s Child Care Payment Program. High-quality childcare is essential for children, working families, and our state’s economic future—but today, too many Mississippi families struggle to access or afford the care they need. Our video series will spotlight real stories from families and […]
Editor’s Note: This post is one in an ongoing series of posts dedicated to the federal role in early childhood in Mississippi. By Micayla Tatum, Director of Early Childhood Policy This blog post is the third in a series that highlights the impact of federal funding for early childhood on both families and communities throughout […]
Editor’s Note: This post is one in an ongoing series of posts dedicated to the federal role in early childhood in Mississippi. By Micayla Tatum, Director of Early Childhood Policy We want to continue to explore the impact of federal early childhood programs in Mississippi. This blog post is the second in a series that […]
By Micayla Tatum, Director of Early Childhood Policy When the legislative session came to a close on Thursday, April 3, 2025, the legislature went home without passing a budget for the state government, including an appropriations bill for the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) and the Mississippi Department of Human Services (DHS). On Wednesday, May […]
Editor’s Note: This post is one in an ongoing series of posts dedicated to the federal role in early childhood in Mississippi. By Micayla Tatum, Director of Early Childhood Policy As Congress weighs funding decisions for fiscal year 2026, we want to explore the impact of federal early childhood programs in Mississippi. This blog post […]
Jackson, Mississippi—Mississippi First is proud to announce the release of its newest report, 2023 Public Perception of Early Childhood Education in Mississippi, which provides valuable insights into Mississippians’ views on the importance, affordability, and accessibility of early childhood education. The survey results underscore the widespread public support for pre-K and early learning initiatives across the state. […]
Editor’s Note: This post is one in an ongoing series of posts dedicated to early education policy in Mississippi. *** By Micayla Tatum, Director of Early Childhood Policy A lack of wage parity is a longstanding issue in the early childhood profession. Childcare teachers, Head Start teachers, and public pre-K teachers have vastly different salaries and access […]
By Micayla Tatum, Director of Early Childhood Policy After four legislative sessions, we are excited to announce that our bill to permanently raise the per-pupil funding rate, HB 817, passed! The Governor signed the bill into law on April 17. This bill increases the state share of per-pupil pre-K funds from $2,150 to a minimum of $2,500 per […]