The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer. Rex Scott is a Pima County supervisor:
United States Sen. Edward Markey once said that “education is not only a ladder of opportunity, but it is also an investment in our future.” He could have been talking about the Pima Early Education Program scholarships (PEEPs) when he made that statement. This essential program is celebrating the end of its first year.
My colleagues on the Board of Supervisors and I created this program last spring to help families who wanted their daughters and sons to have the benefits of preschool, but struggled with the cost. The average monthly cost for preschool in Pima County is $800 per child. If you are parents whose budgets are already stretched thin by paying for housing, food in your kitchen, gas in your car and all the other expenses families confront, putting your child in preschool may seem like a luxury.
If your family income is at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, your child can qualify for a scholarship that will get them into the preschool of your choice. For a family of four, that is an annual income of roughly $53,000 per year. Next year, we will pilot an initiative for parents in the Tucson Unified School District that will allow families whose income is at or below 300% of the federal poverty level to qualify for assistance.
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In this first year, PEEPs helped close to 700 children who might have missed out on preschool otherwise. Think of what that opportunity means for these kids and their futures! For their families and their peace of mind! For our community and its future! In the years to come, even more children will be served. One superintendent told me recently that the preschools in his district will be able to accommodate almost half a kindergarten cohort next year.
During this last year and for the next two, Pima County is using funds from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to fund our portion of the program. We also receive financial support from the City of Tucson, the Town of Marana, the Town of Oro Valley and all participating school districts. Donations to the United Way from individuals and businesses also provide necessary support.
When pandemic relief funds are exhausted, we will use a small portion of the secondary property tax that funds the library district to pay the county’s share of the program. A law passed by the Arizona Legislature last spring gave all counties this authority. With this assurance of annual funding, our school district partners and their counterparts in the private sector can move forward with confidence to ensure that we have the capacity to enroll any child in preschool whose parent wants that for them.
The support from United Way mostly assists PEEPs through a program known as Accelerate Quality, which is designed to help preschools meet the State of Arizona’s standards for high-quality early childhood education. Thanks in part to this program, there are now 208 preschool providers in our county that meet the state’s expectations.
Please visit the Pima County website to learn more about PEEPs, the Accelerate Quality endeavor and to read the progress reports from this first year. If you live in one of the participating school districts, are a member of the Tohono O’odham Nation, or the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, find out what is being done in your area. If you are interested in any private-sector preschool provider, find out if they are part of the program.
John F. Kennedy reminded us that “our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education.” We should never allow any of our children to be denied the benefits of education. The investments we make in our children are always worthwhile. I hope that everyone in Pima County will see the potential inherent in knocking down barriers to access to quality early childhood education.
Rex Scott is a retired public school educator and a Pima County Supervisor.
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