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Massachusetts Update

State Budget

EEA is advocating for preservation of funding for high-quality early education and care in the FY11 state budget.

View the Fiscal Year 2011 budget update.

View a summary of early education in the FY10 state budget.

View a summary of early education in the FY09 state budget.

 
Legislation

An Act Relative to the Achievement Gap. EEA advocated for the following provisions, which were included in “An Act Relative to the Achievement Gap,” education reform legislation that Governor Deval Patrick signed on January 18:

  Early education and care representation on local stakeholder groups. Local stakeholder groups for elementary school turnaround plans must include a representative of early education appointed by the commissioner of the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC).
  Child development assessments. Measurements that help determine the impact of efforts to turn around under-performing schools must include “developmentally appropriate child assessments from pre-kindergarten to third grade, if applicable.”
  Early literacy. Research-based early literacy programs may be included in a turnaround plan.
  High-quality early education. Likewise, under-performing elementary schools that do not have pre-kindergarten and/or full-day kindergarten programs may include them in their turnaround plans.

Learn more about the law.

An Act Relative to Early Education and Care. On July 31, 2008, Gov. Patrick signed “An Act Relative to Early Education and Care into law as Chapter 215 of the Acts of 2008. This landmark bill, passed unanimously by both the Massachusetts House of Representatives and the Senate, formally establishes the Universal Pre-Kindergarten Program in the commonwealth, subject to appropriation.

Learn more about the law.

 
Race to the Top

Race to the Top is a $4 billion competitive federal grant program designed to help states improve educational outcomes and turn around low-performing schools. In its application, Massachusetts included early education in several provisions, including proposed “wrap-around zones” that offer comprehensive instruction and other support and the regional Readiness Centers designed to improve the quality of teaching at all levels.

Scroll to pp. 180-182 to read about early education in the state’s application.

 
Department of Early Education & Care

In 2005, Massachusetts streamlined governance by consolidating its early education and child care bureaucracies to create the nation’s first Department of Early Education and Care. EEC is statutorily responsible for the development and implementation of:

  A program of voluntary, universally accessible high-quality early childhood education for all preschool-aged children in the commonwealth;
  A high-quality system of public and private early education and care;
  A kindergarten readiness assessment system and a comprehensive evaluation of early education and care programs; and
  A workforce development system that supports the education, training and compensation of the early education and care workforce, including all center, family child care, infant, toddler, preschool and school-age providers.

 

View an update on the Department of EEC website.
Visit EEC's website.

 
617.330.7380          400 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02110          info@earlyeducationforall.org