Californians for President Obama's Early Learning Plan

When President Obama releases his budget next week, we urge him to stand strong and announce a robust early learning budget proposal that truly puts the nation's earliest learners first. California is a ready partner for investing robustly and wisely in early learning.
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Early learning is not a red state or a blue state issue; it is fundamental to every American child's educational success. That's why California school superintendents, elected officials, business leaders and child advocates are rallying behind President Obama's leadership on early education, and pledging to leverage the momentum for our country's youngest learners.

On the eve of President Obama's California visit, we've launched Californians for President Obama's Early Learning Plan, a statewide campaign to leverage the momentum for early learning. Our campaign will help advance early education programs statewide and nationwide, and ensure that California is well-positioned to leverage new federal funds and support for early learning.

The campaign's launch included publishing an open letter to President Obama in support of his early learning plan on behalf of 38 superintendents representing over 1.5 million California public school students, including the state's four largest school districts -- Los Angeles Unified, San Diego Unified, Long Beach Unified, and Fresno Unified. Superintendents of County Offices of Education from around the state likewise published an open letter to the president in support of his early learning plan.

Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla also presented the "Preschool for All in California" state resolution in support of the president's early learning plan, which is now circulating in the California state legislature.

Business leaders across the state joined the campaign's call in support of early learning as well. The California Preschool Business Advisory Council, which represents 6,000 California companies employing more than two million workers statewide, published an open letter to President Obama, urging significant investments in preschool programs in his forthcoming budget proposal.

As the nation's most populated state and home to one out of every eight children in America, California will play a vital role in fulfilling the president's vision for early learning. California is a bellwether state for innovation and a leader in expanding access to high-quality early learning with the implementation of the Kindergarten Readiness Act, which expanded access to high quality early learning for more than 125,000 four-year-olds.

When President Obama releases his budget next week, we urge him to stand strong and announce a robust early learning budget proposal that truly puts the nation's earliest learners first. California is a ready partner for investing robustly and wisely in early learning.

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