Item #1: According to Zogby (1/10/06), 81% of U.S. business executives - "[f]acing a decline in the number of skilled workers" - support "public funding of voluntary pre-kindergarten for all children." In addition, 83% "rated the importance of a skilled workforce as 'very high' if the U.S. is to remain globally competitive.Item #2: Last night, Tim Kaine said in his "State of the Commonwealth Address:"
Earlier today, I signed an executive order creating the statewide Start Strong Council which will be made up of parents, educators, private and faith-based pre-K providers, business leaders, and legislators from both parties. I will charge them with developing guidelines for enrolling more Virginia 4-year-olds in high-quality pre-K programs. I also urge you to pass the $57 million package of early childhood initiatives in the introduced budget, for early intervention, maternal health, child care and mental health needs of our youngest Virginians.
Kaine added that "more than 1/3 of our children lack the basic skills needed to learn how to read when they enter kindergarten," that "25,000 Virginia third-graders fail the state's reading exam every year," and that "most of a child's brain develops before the age of five."
In other words, Tim Kaine's push for high-quality pre-K for Virginia's 4 year olds is not just the right thing to do in terms of the science, it's also supported by U.S. business leaders. Now, remind me again, which party is the "pro-business" party? Seems to me that we ALL do better, and that includes our businesses and our economy in general, when we take enlightened steps such as Tim Kaine is proposing. I urge everyone to support the Governor's pre-K proposal.