Take Action: Tell President Obama that pre-k must be a part of his education reform agenda

Tonight at 9 p.m. (EST) President Obama will deliver his State of the Union address.

Remind him that pre-k is the first step to improving our schools and that it must be viewed as an indispensable part of our education system.

Subject Line:

Dear President Obama,

(Edit Letter Below)

Thank you for being such an outspoken supporter of early childhood education.

Getting children ready to learn is the first step to improving our schools. But right now, 70 percent of our nation's three and four year olds have no access to publicly-funded pre-kindergarten.

This year, when you and your administration work with Congress to renew and revise our nation's major education law - the Elementary and Secondary Education Act - I hope you will make early education a top priority by creating a federal funding stream for state pre-k.

Pre-k must be viewed as an indispensable part of our education system. When early education programs are of high quality, they yield positive outcomes like improving children's cognitive, social and emotional skills; increasing their educational attainment; decreasing the need for grade retention and special education services; and closing the achievement gap. In addition to these returns that families, communities, and policymakers are seeking, every dollar put toward high-quality pre-k is both an educational and economic stimulus, generating an annual rate of return of up to 16 percent over the lifetime of a child.

Please reaffirm your commitment to pre-k in the State of the Union address tonight and in the months ahead when Congress looks to reauthorize ESEA. Thank you for your time and your continued commitment to children and families across the country.

[Your name]
[Your address]

Take Action

Send this message to:

President Barack Obama

Complete the following to send this message and sign-up to receive periodic updates. If you have participated before, just type in your email address then submit the form.

Email:*

First Name:*

Last Name:*

Street Address Line 1:*

Address Line 2:

City:*

State:

ZIP/Postal Code:*

Country:*

* Required Field

NoSchoolForSam