Challenge:
Research shows that early childhood education is critically important to long-term student success, but many Arkansans, especially in low-income rural areas, lack access to high quality pre-K options.
Solution:
In 2017, Forward Arkansas successfully advocated to the Governor and state leaders to increase funding for the Arkansas Better Chance Program to $3 million per year, permanently. Since then, our team has continued to advocate for increases in educator compensation. We also secured funding for scholarships allowing mid-career early childhood educators to pursue more education, ultimately improving early childhood programs.
