Educators universally recognize the importance of early education. The earlier a youngster is exposed to learning skills and content, the better. This applies not only to beginning a second language, where young minds are especially sensitive, but to other areas of learning as well. A youngster who begins first grade with a good vocabulary, knowing numbers and some concepts will be much more successful than a youngster who does not.
In Colorado, kindergarten is funded only at a half-day level. For a school district to cover the cost of a full day of kindergarten, it has to take funds from other years and programs. That is what Durango School District 9-R does, recognizing the importance of that full day. Many other districts stop at a half day.
Earlier this week, members of a state Senate committee voted along party lines to kill a bill which would have asked Colorado voters to begin funding kindergarten at a higher level. Eventually, in 2022, a full day would be fully funded.
There had been testimony before the committee from several educators as to the value of full-day kindergarten.
The opposition claimed that a statewide vote, assuming the question passed, would create a one-size-fits-all scenario, and that individual districts should decide the degree of funding for kindergarten.
That was unfortunate.
Colorado, like many states, has a school funding system which has led to a significant gulf between districts with adequate property assessments to produce school tax revenues, and those without. Generally, metropolitan districts, those with mountain resorts or colleges or universities, do better. Small mountain communities, the eastern plains and south-central Colorado fare worse. The state backfills the less prosperous districts, but insufficiently.
Legislators, particularly Republicans, are very wary of raising taxes. The best that can be done sometimes is to ask voters whether they want to increase taxes, or in this case, to specifically direct funding.
Raising the floor in kindergarten funding so that all Colorado children could benefit from a full day would reflect well on the entire state. Good education means better jobs, and better family lives and community vigor. That should be the goal as much as possible in all parts of the state.
We hope that advocates for full-day kindergarten continue to work to shape legislation that will make it possible to provide the important jump-start for all children entering school. Putting as much as possible into the earliest years makes it much more likely that school success will follow.
