4.1: Expand public school financing for early childhood facilities and provide school construction grants.

Children are more likely to thrive, learn and have a healthy development when they are in environments that are safe, sound and appropriate for their developmental stage. However, many children are in facilities that lack basic amenities to make the environment accessible to pre-school aged children and program professionals who seek to maximize their students’ training and care. The federal government can help support the development of age-appropriate facilities through the provision of school construction and modernization subsidy and loan programs. States can also designate additional funding streams to support the construction and modernization of early childhood facilities.

Potential Policy Actors:

• Federal legislators and/or policymakers
• State legislators
• State education agencies
• Local education agencies

Policy Actions to Prioritize Building and Maintenance of Quality Early Childcare Facilities

• Federal government programs that provide loans, subsidies and tax credits to support school construction and expansion should assign preferences to projects and states that seek to develop, expand and improve early education facilities.
• State education agencies can request that their governors and legislators to direct a portion of the federal allocation of Government Services funds and Education Stabilization funds to preferences for the construction, renovation and expansion of schools that include or seek to include facilities for early education programs.
• Local education agencies can partner with private corporations to support the modernization of early education programs to prepare children, at the earliest stage possible, for the 21st century workforce.

Action Steps for Advocates

• Assess your community’s current early education facilities with reference to factors such as sufficiency in number of programs, and the safety and technology quality of buildings.
• Find out the level of support currently provided in your state and locality for the development of early childhood education facilities and develop a plan to request the inclusion or increase that support as appropriate.
• Develop coalitions to support state and local funding requests from the state and federal government.
• Develop coalitions including local and state education agencies and early education programs to request in-kind support (computers, desks, fixtures) or funding from the private sector to improve or build early education facilities.