Media Contact & News Releases

For all Media Inquiries, please contact:

Andrew Heller
Director of Communications
Early Childhood Investment Corporation
aheller@ecic4kids.org
Cell: 810.399.3017
Office: 517.371.9000

Recent releases:

Feb. 17, 2010

Granholm budget largely maintains early childhood programs, but with a troubling exception

LANSING – Governor Jennifer Granholm’s fiscal year 2011 budget is a mixed bag of relief and concern for early childhood advocates.

While the budget maintains funding for most early childhood programs, it eliminates the state’s only mental health program for children 0-5.

The Child Care Enhancement Program (CCEP) serves high-risk children with social-emotional and behavioral challenges who are in danger of being expelled from child care. The FY 2010 budget includes $1.8 million for those infant and toddler mental health services.

“Not supporting the social and emotional health of young children puts them at risk of failing in school,” said Judy Samelson, CEO of the Early Childhood Investment Corporation. “It also puts the burden on schools to address the problems of these young children.”

Prekindergarten and other early childhood programs are well-documented as critical to school readiness. According to a survey last year of Michigan kindergarten teachers, one-third of their incoming students aren’t able to keep up, owing to emotional, physical, social or educational weaknesses. Eighty six percent of those teachers said children who are not ready impact the children who are.

Prekindergarten programs have also been shown to save money. Samelson cited a recent economic impact study by Minnesota-based Wilder Research that indicated Michigan’s prekindergarten programs save the state $1.15 billion annually by lowering special education, welfare and criminal justice costs.

The governor’s proposal also:

• Maintains $107 million of funding for early childhood programs in the School Aid budget.
• Maintains $14.6 million of funding for the Early Childhood Investment Corporation, most of which is used for child care quality programs.
• Maintains $3.8 million of funding to the Zero to Three Secondary Prevention Initiative, which provides services to families who may be at risk of having a child removed from the home.
• Lowers the amount available for subsidy payments to low-income working parents from $238.8 million in 2010 to $223 million.
• Lowers funding for Public Health Department immunization programs.
• Drops School Aid budget language that allowed local school districts to use prekindergarten funding for other purposes.

Early childhood advocates worry that while the budget supports many early childhood initiatives, it also relies on potentially controversial revenues and reforms that may prove difficult for the Legislature to pass in an election year.

“The governor’s plan clearly recognizes the value of early childhood, but the question is will lawmakers approve it in the current highly polarized atmosphere?” said Scott Dzurka, president and CEO of the Michigan Association of United Ways. “And if they don’t, will they target early childhood like they did last year?”

Samelson said early childhood advocates will work to see that doesn’t happen.

“We have to continue educating lawmakers so they understand that to researchers, economists and educators there is no debate any longer - helping children birth to 5 is without a doubt good business. And there should be no debate in Michigan either.”

The Early Childhood Investment Corporation was founded in 2005 to be the state's focal point for information and investment in early childhood in Michigan. Fifty-five Great Start Collaboratives and Parent Coalitions serve as the local infrastructure for the Great Start system. These local groups of parents, educators, business and community leaders, clergy, law enforcement, philanthropic organizations, local public agencies and others are the "knowledge leaders" and "change agents" for young children and their families.

January 25, 2010

Ensuring Michigan kids are ready for school
saves taxpayers $1.15 billion annually

LANSING - State spending over the past 25 years to educate Michigan children before they even get to kindergarten saves taxpayers $1.15 billion annually, an economic-impact study released today by St. Paul-based Wilder Research shows.
The study is the first of its kind in Michigan to document over such a broad array of sectors ¬¬-- from K-12 education, government spending and tax revenues, to public safety, health and the economy -- the economic benefits of adequately preparing low-income children.

“School success is a critical issue for any state trying to build a strong economy,” Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan said at a Capitol news conference. “This study makes it clear that Michigan will continually lag behind its economic competitors unless it invests in the education of its youngest citizens.”

Chris Holman, Michigan’s Small Business Advocate and founder and publisher of Greater Lansing Business Monthly magazine, agreed: “Investment in early childhood programs is absolutely critical to economic success. Michigan must be strategic about its investment in human capital if it expects to end up with competent citizens and skilled workers for the long haul.”

Conducted by the research arm of the Minnesota-based Wilder Foundation, the study estimates the dollar value of benefits generated in 2009 by Michigan children currently in school who received early education services and by young adults who have been more successful as a result of those programs. It was commissioned by the Early Childhood Investment Corp. (ECIC), a public nonprofit corporation formed in 2005 to coordinate the state’s programs and services for children from birth through age 5.

The estimated $1.15 billion annual savings for Michigan includes:

$221 million in K-12 savings, including $136 million in reduced spending on students repeating grades, $69 million in reduced special education spending and $16 million in reduced teacher-turnover costs related to student performance.
$584 million in reduced government spending and increased tax revenues, including $214 million in juvenile corrections, $106 million in reduced child abuse and neglect, $94 million in adult criminal justice, $66 million in welfare and Medicaid costs, $40 million in reduced unemployment benefits, $31 million in reduced child care subsidies because children are instead in early education programs and $33 million in increased income tax and sales tax revenue due to higher worker productivity.
$347 million in reduced social costs, including $259 million in reduced losses to victims of violent crimes, $74 million in increased productivity and incomes of employed parents while their children are in early education programs, and $14 million in health savings due to reduced alcohol and drug abuse.

The Wilder study comes on the heels of “The Costs of Disinvestment” report issued last week by the Washington, D.C.-based Pew Center on the States. That report presented scientific and other data showing that investments in early childhood programs are fundamental to achieving a globally competitive workforce and fiscal sustainability for states and the nation.

“These studies – Wilder in particular – document that if the state’s investments in early childhood programs were to be cut, future state budgets and the overall economy would suffer,” said Judy Samelson, CEO of ECIC. “Not investing in school readiness would cost Michigan much more over time than supporting these programs costs today.”

She pointed to Wilder study findings regarding the Great Start Readiness and Head Start programs, which currently serve more than 47,000 low-income 4-year-olds across Michigan with half-day or full-day educational programs.

June 25, 2009

Michigan voters say no to funding cuts for early childhood programs

LANSING, Mich. – On the heels of the Michigan Senate’s decision to slice hundreds of millions from the state’s early childhood efforts, a poll released today shows three-quarters of Michigan voters want early childhood development and education programs protected from such cuts.

Seventy-five percent consider it “extremely” or “very” important to spare Michigan’s youngest learners and their parents from the budget wrangling in Lansing, according to the poll released by the Early Childhood Investment Corp. (ECIC).

Similarly, 83 percent of those polled think early childhood development and education is “an absolute necessity” for their community, including 69 percent who strongly believe that.

The poll of 500 Michigan registered voters, conducted by Lake Research Partners and paid for by the Kellogg Foundation, also found that support for early childhood efforts cuts across demographic and geographic lines (see details below). Voters also favored funding early childhood efforts even if it increases their taxes.

“With times so hard and unemployment at 14 percent, Michigan families need early childhood programs and supports like pre-K, home visits and child care subsidies more than ever,” said Judy Samelson, CEO of ECIC, a public nonprofit corporation working on behalf of young families. “Legislators face truly horrible choices with this budget. But children, their future and the state’s future are not choices. They are necessities.”

Samelson was backed by a broad coalition of state organizations opposed to state cuts to early childhood programs. The coalition includes the American Academy of Pediatrics – Michigan Chapter, Children’s Trust Fund, Children’s Charter, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, Great Start Collaboratives, Great Start Parent Coalitions, Michigan Association for the Education of Young Children, Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health, Michigan Association of United Ways, Michigan’s Children, Michigan Coalition of Children and Families, Michigan Council for Maternal and Child Health and Michigan League for Human Services.

“As any parent knows, providing for the needs of young children is not an optional activity,” said Nancy Moody, chairperson of the Children's Trust Fund. “The state must not fail to meet its responsibilities to Michigan’s youngest citizens and to its economic future, which those children will help create.

Ingham County Sheriff Gene Wriggelsworth, executive committee member of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Michigan, said: "We urge lawmakers to restore funding to the proven early childhood education and care programs that give kids the right start and keep them out of our prisons. Today, it costs as much to send someone to prison as it does to send them to MichiganStateUniversity or the University of Michigan. Preventing crime at the front end will save valuable taxpayer dollars, and it’s in the best interest of our children and communities."

The Lake Research poll also found:

People across the state view investing in early childhood as necessary, with voters in WayneCounty (83 percent), West Michigan (70 percent), the metro Detroit region (66 percent) and Central Michigan (66 percent) all strongly agreeing on their value.

Regardless of political affiliation, voters say these programs are vital, with 85 percent of Democrats, 63 percent of independents and 61 percent of Republicans strongly agreeing.

74 percent favor investing in early childhood even if it raises their taxes.
50 percent of likely voters said the state already spends “too little” on early childhood development and education. Only 6 percent of voters believe Michigan spends too much on early childhood.
95 percent said the years from birth to age 5 were either “extremely important” (65 percent) to learning and development or “very important” (30 percent). Research shows that 85 percent of a child’s brain architecture is formed by age 3.
91 percent said ensuring that all children arrive at kindergarten ready to learn was either “extremely important” (56 percent) or “very important” (35 percent).
54 percent said they would be “much more likely” or “somewhat more likely” to vote for candidates who favor maintaining funding.

The poll comes as Michigan lawmakers are grappling to cut more than $2 billion in the 2010 budget. Since the beginning of the year, early childhood and development programs across the board have been targeted for elimination or significant reduction, including:

Elimination of pre-K programs for 30,500 Michigan 4-year-olds, totaling $103 million.
Reductions in child care supports for low-income working families ($135 million).
A reduction of at least $25 million to Medicaid providers who offer health care services to children 0-5.
Elimination of three programs to prevent child abuse and neglect: 0-3 Secondary Prevention, Nurse-Family Partnership and Great Parents, Great Start – totaling $14 million.
Elimination of all funding ($14.3 million) for the Early Childhood Investment Corporation. Thirteen million of those dollars go for programs and supports that increase the quality of child care in Michigan and support communities.
A reduction of $750,000 for Michigan’s 55 Great Start Collaboratives, which study local problems facing young learners and their parents then make a community plan to maximize resources, minimize waste, eliminate duplication of services and develop programs to “fill the gaps” in early childhood services.