Obama Plans for Child Care

Two recent articles in the Huffington Post (on 01/18/2013 and 02/01/2013) reveal that the Obama administration is planning a major push to expand early childhood services in his second administration in a manner that is certain to stir wide controversy.

Although details released in the Huffington Post articles are sketchy and certainly not the final word, here are some ideas being floated in advance of Obama's State of the Union address [Note: Often controversial concepts are "leaked" prior to a State of the Union address to gauge reactions in time to make adjustments.]:

• The plan is "to create universal pre-kindergarten for 4-year-olds from low- and some middle-income families — approximately 1.85 million children... which is projected to cost as much as $10 billion to implement in full.... Kids in families that make below 200 percent of the poverty line would be eligible."
• "Whereas Head Start emphasizes things like health, nutrition, and emotional development, the new program would integrate preschool into the existing K-12 school system and focus more on academics. It would also expand access to early childhood education beyond lower-income families to eventually include the middle class."
• This is described as a 10-year project "to transfer responsibilities for public funding of 4-year-olds' education to states from the feds." Part of this plan is rumored to include turning Head Start monies over to states in the form of block grants.

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