Office of Early Childhood Opening remarks

Thank you, Kari. And, thank you to the Governor for inviting me. 

Today is a good day for Kansas kids and families! The evidence is clear - investing in the youngest children is one of the smartest policy decisions we can make. 90 percent of brain development happens before a child’s fifth birthday and their experiences in those first five years shape the trajectory of their life. 

Decisions we make in Topeka affect our constituents’ lives everyday. We talk about infrastructure - roads, water, and internet - recognizing that the state has a role to play to facilitate these services for communities and Kansans. Child care and investments in our early childhood system is critical infrastructure too. 

States across the country are making strides toward better meeting the needs of families navigating the early years of parenthood and all the struggles that come along with the joy. 

Raising little kids is very hard work and the reality is that most families need two parents in the workforce to make ends meet - and that makes child care and early education professionals critical pieces of our state’s economic infrastructure. 

But too often, when families welcome a new baby they find themselves navigating a confusing and complicated web of early childhood services. The very least we can do is put all the state’s services in one place, and today we’ve done that with the Kansas Office of Early Childhood. 

Today is just the beginning though because as important as this office is, there’s more that must be done - especially when it comes to helping families find and afford child care. When we talk about making life more affordable for Kansas families, child care must be part of the conversation. A year of child care often costs more than a year of college tuition. It’s forcing families to make difficult decisions about someone leaving the workforce, delaying home ownership, or having fewer children than they would like. Other states are starting to solve this problem and we can too. In fact, we must solve it for the future vitality of our state and economic stability for families. 

Early childhood investments are not just about the short-term outcomes of young children’s education and families’ economic stability. The long-term outcomes show that investments in high quality early childhood programs - like child care and home visiting - strengthen our economy, increase workforce participation, and reduce social spending. Investments in the youngest Kansans and the systems that provide services to families is always a good bet and it’s one I’ll make everyday. 

But perhaps most importantly, today marks the day that the state says unequivocally - young children matter, they are worth investing in and we want families who are doing the hard work of raising little Kansans to have a dedicated and streamlined office when they are looking for information and assistance. 

In my work representing House District 10 there is one question I always judge policy proposals by - Is it good for the kids? Without doubt, this is good for the kids; it’s good for families; and it’s good for our state.