Ready Schools Miami: How It’s Done

Miami-Dade County, the nation’s fourth largest school district, offers a compelling example of how school district leaders can and must incorporate high-quality early education into their broader school reform and improvement. Spearheaded by Superintendent Alberto Carvalho and supported by a host of local and national partner organizations, Ready Schools Miami connects high-quality pre-k programs with improved kindergarten and early elementary school programs to create an aligned, high-quality pre-k through third grade continuum designed to ensure children exit third grade with a solid foundation in the academic and other skills they need to succeed in the later elementary, middle and high school years. Ready Schools Miami is also linked with quality childcare and other initiatives aimed at improving early learning and development for children even before the early elementary years.

Early childhood advocate and former Miami Herald publisher David Lawrence lays out the details in a Miami Herald op-ed published last week. Per previous, this is something Chancellor Rhee could stand to take a look at as she refines her five-year plan for improving the District of Columbia’s troubled school system. It’s also a model that President-elect Obama, incoming Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and Congressional leaders should pay attention to as they craft and implement early education legislation to fulfill Obama’s campaign pledges to increase early childhood investments.