An Act Relative to Third Grade Reading Proficiency. Early Education for All filed legislation in January 2011 to focus state efforts to ensure that children become proficient readers by the end of third grade. Representative Martha Walz (D-Boston) and Senator Katherine Clark (D-Melrose) are the bill’s lead sponsors. The bill would establish the Massachusetts Early Learning Council to advise state education departments on a statewide early language and reading strategy for children from birth to third grade. The council would provide guidance to ensure that:

	Professional development is on-site, data-driven, linked to practice, collaborative and sustained over time to create a culture of continuous improvement.
	Curriculum is language-rich, engaging and rigorous.
	Assessment is comprehensive, developmentally appropriate and used to inform practice.
	Family engagement is open and ongoing and supports children’s language and literacy development.

The 17-member council would be established within the Executive Office of Education and would be co-chaired by the secretary of education and a recognized expert in children’s language and literacy development. Representatives from the state’s legislators, early educators, parents, elementary school principals, superintendents, reading specialists, school committee members, teachers unions, pediatricians and advocates would serve on the council.

Learn more about the 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, 2010:

	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.

On August 24, 2010, Governor Deval Patrick, members of the congressional delegation and state legislative leaders announced that Massachusetts was one of 10 award recipients in the second round of the federal Race to the Top competition, which focused on K-12 education, and would receive $250 million over four years to implement landmark reforms in public education. The commonwealth's application received the highest score among the winners, which also included Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Rhode Island. EEA successfully worked with state policymakers to insure that early education was incorporated into the commonwealth's application. Included in its plan, Massachusetts:

	Commits the Departments of Early Education and Care and Elementary and Secondary Education to align pre-kindergarten and K-3 standards and develop formative assessments and curriculum-embedded performance tasks.
	Commits to build a longitudinal data system that begins "as soon as a student is touched by the public system."
	Supports the six regional Readiness Centers' mission of providing professional development for educators across the continuum, from early childhood to higher education.
	Creates wraparound zones in seven Level 4 districts to coordinate comprehensive social services for children and families.

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

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.

Visit EEC's website.