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N.Y.C. Council speaker calls on Mayor Eric Adams to resign; KY could do more to protect kids from accidental drug ingestion, shootings; OH food banks face fed funding uncertainty, DeWine budget cuts; Protesters say Trump administration actions 'cast aside democracy.'

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On a Middle East visit, Sen. Richard Blumenthal rejects a Gaza takeover. President's Day protests erupt around the country against White House moves, and another aviation accident draws attention to recent FAA cuts.

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Rural America struggles with opioids and homelessness in unexpected ways, Colorado's Lariat Ditch could help spur local recreation, and book deliveries revive rural communities hit by Hurricane Helene.

Budget Agreement Called Victory for PA Kids

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Wednesday, July 5, 2017   

HARRISBURG, Pa. – The budget agreement passed by Pennsylvania's General Assembly gives a big boost to early childhood education.

The bipartisan spending plan adds $25 million for the state's Pre-K Counts program, and almost $5 million for Head Start.

Joan Benso, president and CEO of Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children and a partner in the Pre-K for PA program, said that will open the door to critical learning programs for thousands more three- and four-year-olds across the Commonwealth.

"The Pre-K for PA Campaign is striving to ensure that every child at risk of school failure has access to high-quality, publicly-funded pre-K by 2021-22," Benso said, "and this increase is a really great step in that direction."

Gov. Tom Wolf is expected to sign the budget if the General Assembly is able to agree on a revenue package to pay for it in the next week.

Benso added that the budget also restores $20 million previously cut from child care, and funds a totally new program to help parents.

"That will create a grant program for evidence-based home visiting initiatives that reduce child abuse, improve health, improve early learning," she explained. "That appropriation is nearly $5 million."

Benso cited decades of studies showing that high-quality early education pays a lifetime of dividends, including higher high-school graduation rates and greater earning potential in adulthood.

"The estimates are that there's a return of about $4, at least, for every dollar invested," she noted. "And any public investment that returns more than the dollar you invested in it is a winner in our book."

The budget agreement also increases K-through-12 spending by $100 million, and special education by $25 million.




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