NC Governor Beverly Perdue has proposed to restore the 3/4 of the one-cent sales
tax that was eliminated during the last legislative session to dedicate those
funds to education. In response, Dr. Olson Huff,
Chair of the Board of The North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc., released
the following statement.
“North Carolina is known
for investing in its people and recognizing that economic development begins
with early childhood development. Our state’s early childhood work has produced
enormous education, health, and economic results for the state. We see it in
higher third grade reading and math scores, decreased special education
placements, and lower dropout rates. We see it as a factor when businesses
decide to move here and when magazines name our region as one of the best
places to live.
With renewed investment,
we can make children, families, communities and economies stronger. This is
critical in today’s environment, where there are more children birth to five,
more of those children are living in poverty, and far fewer resources available
than a decade ago. Since 1990, there has been an 85% increase in the
number of children living in poverty. At the same time, funds have
declined— most significantly during the last legislative session when early
childhood education taking a disproportionate cut, meaning today far fewer
children and communities are benefiting from needed early childhood services.
Any new public resources
must be invested wisely. In the words of Dr. Andrew Meltzoff of University of
Washington Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, ‘There are only 2,000
days between the newborn baby and when that child will show up in
kindergarten. . . Our children can’t wait.’
Together, we can provide
the early education, health and developmental resources parents need to raise
capable children and successful adults. In doing so, North Carolina will
attract businesses, grow jobs and guarantee prosperity.”
Here is the Governor's Press Release.
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