New Orleans Area Law Enforcement: Early Education A Head Start On Crime Prevention
Jul 22nd 2009
NEW ORLEANS (July 22, 2009) -- New Orleans Police Superintendent Warren Riley, Jefferson Parish District Attorney Paul Connick Jr., Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre and Plaquemines Parish District Attorney Charles J. Ballay held a joint news conference at New Orleans Police Department headquarters Wednesday to announce their support for early childhood care and education initiatives that reduce future crime.
They released a new report called “High-quality Early Care and Education: The Key to Crime Prevention and School Success in Louisiana,” from the group FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS. The report examines research showing that quality early childhood programs increase school success for kids who participate and prevent children from turning to crime later in life.
“In law enforcement, it’s our duty to keep the public safe and lock up dangerous criminals. But no punishment can undo a crime,” Riley said. “We must take every step available to prevent crime and violence before it ever occurs. Early education can help us accomplish that.”
The law enforcement leaders cited a 40-year study of the Perry Preschool Program, which followed two groups of Michigan children. The at-risk children who did not attend the high-quality early care and education program were five times more likely to be chronic offenders by age 27 compared to similar children who did participate.
The children who benefited from the early learning program were also 44 percent more likely to graduate from high school. Children who benefit from high-quality early care and education are also less likely to become teen parents or collect welfare. Those who attend early education programs are also more likely to pursue higher education and earn more income as adults.
Connick said that investing in early childhood education saves taxpayer dollars through those reductions in crime, welfare and other expenses. The Perry Preschool program, for example, saved $16 for every dollar invested, including $11 in savings from reduced crime.
“Law enforcement is strongly behind these programs because of the cold hard fact that investing in early childhood cuts crime, saves lives and saves money,” Connick said. “This is a crime prevention strategy that Louisiana needs.”
Research studies have also shown that early education returns about half of its original cost in school-related savings, primarily from decreased numbers of students requiring special education or repeating grades.
“There’s no better way to prevent crime in our communities than by devoting our time, energy and resources to getting kids the right start. Our public safety depends on our willingness to make that early commitment,” Webre said.
Louisiana delivers early education opportunities to at-risk children through a number of state and federal initiatives, including Head Start and the LA-4 program for 4-year-olds. However, despite the crime prevention and educational benefits of early education programs, many families in Louisiana are unable to enroll their children because of the expense or because services are not available.
The law enforcement officials urged Louisiana’s Congressional Delegation to lead efforts to increase funding for Head Start, Early Head Start, and other early education and care programs for low-income kids. They also urged support for the administration’s proposed Early Learning Challenge Fund, which would provide grants for states to expand and improve their early childhood development initiatives.
Ballay said that more support is needed at the state and federal level to ensure that quality early childhood programs are available and affordable to more families.
“It’s a tough time to be calling for new funding, but this is an important investment in our children’s future. It will bring positive results to our community by preventing kids from dropping out of school and dropping into the criminal justice system,” Ballay said.
Riley, Connick, Webre and Ballay are members of FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS, a national anti-crime organization led by 5,000 police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors and violence survivors, including 54 in the state of Louisiana.
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