Yesterday, I became aware of President Obama’s Early Learning Challenge Fund proposal. This plan calls for $1 billion a year over 10 years, with the funding stream changing from CCDBG to higher education. Funding will be competitive and will be administered by the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education. The Early Learning Challenge includes some of my favorites:

• National commission for program quality standards and early learning standards. I hope scientific research guides the definition of quality and creation of standards as much as possible.
• Build an effective, qualified workforce for early childhood, but supporting college degree acquisition and intensive professional development to improve skills and knowledge.
• Fund quality initiatives that improve instructional practices, programmatic practices, classroom environment and promote school readiness.
• The only way to help prepare at risk children for kindergarten. Again, we must use what we know works!
• Implementing research-based early learning standards aligned with K-3.
• Develop outreach strategies to promote family and parent involvement.
• Reform quality standards that moves pre-service training requirements for early learning providers and adopt teacher-child ratios and group size.

Keep your eyes and ears open as this appears to be on a fast track!