Arizona Gubernatorial candidates must address this vital economic and social concern @karilake @katiehobbs @1marcolopez @scottneelyAZ @mattsalmonAZ @karrin4Arizona

Early Childhood Education matters to our communities. According to polling by the Arizona Early Childhood Funders Collaborative, 76% of voters believe we should be doing more to prepare our children for kindergarten. Help us spread the word and advocate for the future of our children.

Arizona Rise and Lead:

New Mexico leads the nation by covering the costs of child care for most residents through June 2023 under a new law signed in April.  The benefit, which covers families earning up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level, makes New Mexico the first state to offer no-cost care over such a broad range of incomes.

The state spent $300 million to create its Early Childhood Education and Care Fund. The endowment, which draws on taxes from oil and natural gas production, is projected to be worth $4.3 billion by 2025, according to the newspaper.  Learn more about the universal Pre-K program at the New Mexico Department of Education Early Childhood Division.

The benefit, which covers families earning up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level, makes New Mexico the first state to offer no-cost care over such a broad range of incomes, the Washington Post reported.

New Mexico is one of six states —Alabama, Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Mexico and Washington—which have established early childhood agencies with their directors in cabinet-level positions, reporting directly to the state governor. In 2019, the New Mexico Legislature enacted SB 22 to establish the Early Childhood Education and Care Department, a cabinet-level state agency. To better align and coordinate efforts, the legislation transferred to the department early childhood programs previously spread across multiple state agencies.

Get Serious About Education

It is long past time to put research into practice. Arizona Gubernatorial candidates that cannot or will not address Early Childhood Care and Education as a vital resource – creating comprehensive policy changes – cannot be taken seriously.