Don Owens
Office 202.862.9863
Mobile 202.302.5928
dowens@preknow.org

(Washington, DC) - The Executive Director of Pre-K Now, Libby Doggett, today issued the following statement on a report detailing the rapid decline of degreed teachers in pre-k:

"Today's report shows that since the 1980's, the number of teachers with bachelor's degrees in early education who work in pre-kindergarten has actually decreased 13%. This sad and alarming decline in highly qualified pre-k professionals occurs at a time when more states than ever are expanding their early education programs to more children.

"High quality pre-k is in demand among parents, legislators and advocates. In fact, for the current fiscal year states spent more than $205 million on pre-k programs and that figure will increase exponentially for FY'06.

"Research shows that teachers with a Bachelor's Degree have been found to be more sensitive, more engaging and attentive and less negative towards the students in their classroom. It makes sense that we should be doing more to bring in the highest qualified professionals and teachers possible to instruct young children, not less.

"Until leaders realize that every pre-k class needs highly qualified bachelor's degreed teachers with certification in early learning it will be more difficult for states to grasp the full return on tax dollars already used to fund these valuable programs.

"Pre-K Now stands ready with our state partners to show state leaders how we can bring more pre-k teachers with degrees into the field and keep them. First, we must immediately begin paying pre-k teachers with bachelor's degrees on a comparable scale as kindergarten teachers who earn on average some $10-12,000 more for teaching children only one year older. Secondly, we must improve articulation agreements between two and four year colleges which currently serve as barriers for teachers to move from a two-year Associate's degree in early education to a bachelor's degree. Thirdly, the United States must move beyond our national mentality that pre-k can be done on the cheap.

"America's education system expects more today from its teachers and students than at any other time in history. States are investing in pre-k because they want children to do better later on in school. Better educated and better paid teachers typically results in better child outcomes. If we are to expect more from these programs so too must we give more to prepare teachers."

**Access the Economic Policy Institute's "Losing Ground in Early Childhood Education" report here.

Pre-K Now collaborates with state advocates and policymakers to lead a movement for high-quality, voluntary pre-kindergarten for all three and four year olds. We gratefully acknowledge past and present funders: The Pew Charitable Trusts, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Schumann Fund for New Jersey, the Foundation for Child Development, the Kellogg Foundation, the Joyce Foundation and the McCormick Tribune Foundation.

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