Original Source | The Register-Guard
By Jim Torrey, June 13, 2009

Legislators should hold a few simple truths in mind as they decide whether to approve proposed funding cuts for Oregon Head Start pre-kindergarten, the state's cost-effective preschool program for 3- and 4-year-olds living in poverty:

Children growing up now cannot wait for Oregon's economy to rebound.

Head Start saves taxpayers money and closes the achievement gap.

Original Source | Mail Tribune
By Lyn Hennion, Sunday June 7, 2009

How I wish I could send Oregon's legislators two articles - and how I wish they would have time to read them as they are embroiled in the difficult budget decisions in front of them.

One is the recent Mail Tribune front-page story "Babies and Boomers" which touched on the critical importance of early childhood development.

The other is a paper written by two leaders of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis that says, in part, "Careful academic research demonstrates that tax dollars spent on early-childhood development provide extraordinary returns "¦ ranging from $3 to $17 for every dollar invested. This implies an annual rate of return, adjusted for inflation, of between 7 percent and 18 percent."

Original Source | OregonLive.com
By Lynn Lundquist, Saturday June 6, 2009

Legislators should hold a few simple truths in mind as they decide whether to adopt proposed funding cuts for Oregon Head Start Prekindergarten -- the state's cost-effective preschool program for 3- and 4-year-olds living in poverty.

Children growing up now cannot wait for Oregon's economy to rebound.

Head Start saves taxpayers money and closes the achievement gap.

Original Source | Statesman Journal
By Eduardo Angulo, Saturday June 6, 2009

Legislators should hold a few simple truths in mind as they decide whether to adopt proposed funding cuts for Oregon Head Start prekindergarten - the state's cost-effective preschool program for 3- and 4-year-olds living in poverty.

Children growing up now cannot wait for Oregon's economy to rebound.

Head Start saves taxpayers money and closes the achievement gap.

Original Source | OregonLive.com
By Mark Anderson, Merrily Haas, Mary Louise McClintock and Julie Young, Thursday June 4, 2009

If it was announced that Portland State University would lose an entire class of incoming students, or that the University of Oregon or Oregon State would lose a class and a half of students, or that Reed College, Lewis & Clark College and the University of Portland were all simultaneously shutting their doors, Oregonians would be taking to the streets to protest those cuts. But if pending budget cuts are approved, even more young children than that could lose their access to early care and education.