As state lawmakers consider a bill to create a task force to study the impact of racism, Black citizens shared personal stories of discrimination they have faced while living in Colorado.
It came as some surprise for us to learn just how important early education is to a childâs life, especially for kids in low-income households, which are abundant in Mesa County.
Thereâs a growing body of evidence that preschool makes a huge difference in the lives of all children, not just at-risk children. Kids who get preschool graduate at a higher rate, earn more money as adults, save more, are unemployed less and sentenced to incarceration less often than kids who donât.
The state with some of the strongest data in this realm is Oklahoma, which fully pays for preschool for any 4-year-old whose parents want it. One enterprising Oklahoma lawmaker who believed in the promise of universal preschool (based on studies such as The Perry Preschool Project) essentially tricked the state legislature into passing his bill to provide an extra year of public schooling.