PEORIA HEIGHTS, Ill. – It’s only a year old, but Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says the “Smart Start” initiative making funding investments and changes that will help children birth to age five is working wonders.
Pritzker, at Peoria Heights Grade School Thursday, said things like eliminating so-called pre-school deserts, increasing funding for early childhood care, and $250 million worth of work overall could help shape the state’s future.
“‘Smart Start’ is about our collective future,” said Pritzker. “Yes, it’s about our youngest children. Yes, it’s about their parents. But, it’s also about our state, and our economic future. It’s about whether or not we’re going to succeed as a state in so many other things. If we’re helping and lifting up our youngest children, we are truly building the future that we all want for Illinois.”
Among other changes included more money for early intervention programs and the Early Childhood Block Grant, and more home visitations for children that may need it.
One of the big early successes, Pritzker says, is providing more funding for preschool classes in areas that didn’t have them before.
“We immediately went to work in our first year with a goal of expanding preschool spots available to three- and four-year-olds across the state by 5,000,” said Pritzker. “The results are in, and we blew away our first year goal by creating 5,823 new preschool seats.”
The Governor’s office says that was done through funding 95 new programs in so-called “pre-school deserts” in the state.
Morton Schools said Thursday they’re the recipient of a state grant to expand its preschool, and that parents who want to get their kids into that program need to call the district, and that appointments and screenings will be required.
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