Gov. Pence to sign pre-k bill

House Enrolled Act 1004 is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Mike Pence.
HEA 1004 creates a pilot pre-kindergarten program for 4-year-olds in up to five Indiana counties.

The Act is authored by House Education Committee Chairman Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis, and co-authored by House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis.

On Feb, 12, 2014, Pence testified in front of the Indiana Senate Education and Career Development Committee in favor of HEA 1004.

“Because every child deserves to start school ready to learn, I believe the time has come for a voluntary pre-K program to help Indiana’s low-income kids, and I am honored to endorse that proposal before this committee today,” Pence said.

The program is designed to help children who live in poverty and whose families have an income up to 127 percent above the federal poverty level. While the poverty level is about $23,850 for a family of four, families making about $30,000 could qualify, according to a press release from Behning’s office.

The grants range in amount from $2,500 to $6,800.

“Last year, House Republicans took a small step toward our goal of improving pre-K education opportunities for students,” Behning said in the release. “This session, with bipartisan support, we were able to accomplish our goal of establishing a preschool pilot program for children of poverty. These children typically start almost a year and a half behind their peers, and it’s important that we set them up for the best future possible.”

Cathy Fuentes-Rohwer, chair of the Indiana Coalition for Public Education — Monroe County, agreed that early childhood education can help children who may not be receiving any education at home, such as reading books with their family.

“It can be a huge step up for kids when they get to school,” Fuentes-Rohwer said.
Fuentes-Rohwer sent her children to preschool to gain social skills, and said she thinks early childhood education is important. She also said she is happy that one part of HEA 1004 originally written in the act was eliminated.

An original component of the bill would have made children who participate in the program automatically eligible for K-12 vouchers, allowing them to transition to
higher-quality programs, but was taken out. She said she saw it as a pipeline to get kids more vouchers.

Fuentes-Rohwer said she doesn’t want the push for preschool to take more tax money away from public schools.

According to the act, the grant money can be used toward enrollment in a public school, including a charter school, a licensed child care center, a licensed child home care center or a licensed child care ministry.

All schools and care centers must meet the standards of quality recognized by a level three or four Paths to QUALITY program rating. Paths to QUALITY is a program within the Indiana Association for Child Care Resource and Referral in which these schools and centers can enroll.

The counties that will be part of the pilot program will be diverse in geographic location, population and whether the counties are rural or urban. The amount of grant money given in a fiscal year will not exceed $10 million.

“There is no doubt that a high quality education provides the foundation of a child’s education,” Bosma said in the release. “A solid educational foundation provides a child with limitless career opportunities in the future.”