Illinois Gov. Protects Part of Early Childhood Budget, But Still, State Funding Drops

Early education advocates in Illinois are breathing a little easier this month after Gov. Patrick Quinn restored over $85 million in funds for early childhood programs that the Illinois State Board of Education had eliminated during deliberations on the 2010 budget a few weeks ago. The board’s cuts represented more than 32 percent of the 2009 budget and would have had disastrous results for state-funded preschool programs. But even with the governor’s reparation, the early childhood budget will lose 10 percent of its budget — a loss which could affect thousands of children in the state.

The $85 million, which Gov. Quinn pulled from a discretionary fund, will be added to the state’s Early Childhood Block Grant, which provides funding for all early childhood programs operated by local school districts. Gov. Quinn reinstated the money after various advocacy groups and media outlets protested the board’s decision to cope with an overall decrease in the education budget by cutting funding for early childhood education. Voices for Illinois Children, for example (whose founder, Jerry Stermer, now serves as Gov. Quinn’s chief of staff), sent an email to supporters criticizing the state legislature’s approval of the board’s “irresponsible budget” and calling on the governor to use his discretionary appropriations to avoid the cuts.

The block grant is divided between various early childhood programs, such as Preschool for All, the Prevention Initiative, and home visiting programs like Healthy Families Illinois and Parents Too Soon. Each will receive approximately 10 percent less funding in 2010 than is available this year. Preschool for All, for example, received approximately $302 million this year. By our calculations, next year its operating budget will be roughly $272 million.

The total amount of the Early Childhood Block Grant — $342.2 million– remains higher than in fiscal years 2006 through 2008. But the 10 percent cut has caused early childhood advocates to worry that programs will be forced to serve fewer children, reduce opportunities for professional development, and let go of valuable resources, such as learning specialists.

Individual districts will have to decide how to absorb these losses, according to the state board of education, which noted that districts have the option of using outside sources of money to bridge the gap. According to local newspapers, some districts have already considered turning to rainy day funds or redirecting Title I and IDEA funds to eligible preschool programs.

Still, it’s possible that some programs will have to reduce their enrollments. “We believe at least 9,000 fewer children will be able to participate in these programs,” said Gaylord Gieseke, interim president of Voices, “and this means those children may not have the critically important experiences that prepare them to successfully enter school ready to learn and to succeed in school and in life.”

Illinois’ action follows that of Ohio, which was forced by recession-afflicted deficits to eliminate its full-day pre-K program — the Early Learning Initiative — in its 2010 budget.

Earlier this year, we singled out Illinois as an example of how a state might seek to reform its early education programs under President Obama’s proposal for an Early Learning Challenge Fund. It would have been highly worrisome, not to mention ironic, to see Illinois suddenly making such drastic cuts just as Obama’s proposal is now starting to take shape. Last month, Congress began to act on legislation that would authorize it, which HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Education Secretary Arne Duncan have praised publicly. The fund offers “Quality Pathways Grants” to states that have taken steps toward integrating and promoting high-quality early childhood programs similar to what we have seen developing in Illinois.

We’re encouraged to see Gov. Quinn restore $85 million to the block grant, and we hope that this year’s cutbacks won’t prevent the state from continuing to act as a model for alignment and collaboration between federal, state, and community preschool programs.