By Jacqueline Koch
Chattanooga Times Free Press
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Whenever time allows, Lt. Corliss Cooper returns to Calvin Donaldson Elementary School to read to students.
A graduate of the 37th Street school, the Chattanooga Police Department officer understands that keeping children excited about learning increases their chances of graduating.
“If kids realize there’s more to life than hanging out, doing drugs and robbing someone,” they’ll stay in school, said Lt. Cooper, who also reads at Orchard Knob Elementary. “If it’s not fun, they don’t want to be here.”
The importance of funding early education is something pre-k program proponents hope isn’t lost on Tennessee legislators as the next General Assembly session approaches. State lawmakers return to Nashville in January.
Mark Rogers, state director for the nonprofit Fight Crime: Invest in Kids effort, would like to see the legislature increase spending for pre-k, but more realistically he hopes the programs maintain their current $83 million annual state allocation. That amount is matched by local businesses, nonprofit organizations or school systems, he said.
Mr. Rogers travels the state, garnering support from police chiefs, sheriffs and district attorneys, among others, to lobby for legislative support.
“There is substantial research that shows, over long periods of time, that at-risk kids who get pre-k education are better prepared to start school, do well in school and, by doing well in school, are more likely to graduate,” he said. “Kids that graduate from high school are less likely to commit crimes.”
STAYING IN SCHOOL
According to Fight Crime, increasing graduation rates by 10 percentage points would prevent more than 80 slayings and nearly 6,400 aggravated assaults annually in Tennessee. Funding pre-k education now would save money later that would be spent on arresting, processing and imprisoning dropouts who commit crimes, Mr. Rogers said.
Gov. Phil Bredesen this year has said he remains committed to funding and potentially expanding pre-k programs, but advocates worry the current budget crunch will cause cuts throughout state programs, including pre-k.
With the governor’s leadership, Tennessee’s pre-k program has grown from about 3,000 students a year in 2003 to more than 17,000 now, according to Chattanooga Times Free Press archives. Pre-k advocates stress the benefits of such programs, touting their ability to reduce dropout and teen pregnancy rates.
While proponents never directly link pre-k to crime reduction, they do connect early education programs with factors that make young people less likely to commit crimes. For example, the earlier a child starts and enjoys school, the less likely he is to drop out, pre-k proponents assert. Those who finish high school are less likely to commit violent crimes, according to a report by Fight Crime.
High school dropouts are more than three times more likely than graduates to be arrested and eight times more likely to be incarcerated, according to the report.
Chattanooga police officers regularly arrest offenders lacking high school or college diplomas, Deputy Chief Mark Rawlston said.
“You don’t arrest an armed robber with a college degree,” Chief Rawlston said. “You don’t arrest a burglar with a college degree.”
PROGRAM PARTICIPATION
While Chief Freeman Cooper handles the Chattanooga Police Department’s lobbying duties, the entire department understands the need for promoting early education, Chief Rawlston said.
“If someone doesn’t start in the education process and enjoy the education process and make an effort to get education, they’re less likely to stay in school,” he said.
Garnering the support of parents in promoting early education also aids a student’s educational journey, said Dr. Brenda Benford, director of pre-k programs for Hamilton County Schools. Enrollment in pre-k programs has increased during the last three years. The school district offers 44 pre-k classes capped at 20 students each, she said. Some programs have waiting lists.
The programs focus on high-quality education and, in addition to math and literacy skills, also involve music, art and physical education.
“Research has shown that participation in a high-quality classroom can prevent learning problems in later years by providing strong academic skills as soon as the child is ready to receive them,” Dr. Benford said. “If the basic skills are not mastered in the early years, children may continue to struggle in the elementary school years, falling farther behind as their peers move forward.”
COpyright 2008 Chattanooga times Free Press