One of the most profound quotes I have found, which elevates the lifework I hold so dear as a parent, educator, and advocate for children and families, is this: “What we do early in life lays the foundation for all the rest …. Early preventive intervention can be exceptionally valuable,” (“Early Childhood Intervention: The evolution of a concept” by Jack P. Shonkoff and Samual J. Meisels, 1990). Early childhood experiences are pivotal to human development and lifelong success, and as such should be a focal point in our society when it comes to funding, priority, and community awareness and support.

Early-intervention services and support, including quality early education and child care, should be equally available and equitably provided to families. These efforts are our ethical responsibility as a community. As a child’s environment is their window to the world, it should be rich, full of opportunities to explore and individually connect with their caregivers. This is a foundational opportunity for learning and both social and emotional growth in young children. The avenues of a child’s experience in learning should be multifaceted, with opportunities to see, hear, taste, touch, feel and emotionally experience the elements and their world. Through participating in these types of hands-on activities in a real-world context, they can begin the journey of lifelong learning. This kind of experience and exposure to the world will best support them in their learning and success in school when they begin kindergarten. Our children’s futures and the welfare of families is an investment that pays back and is worth investing in, from a moral and financial standpoint.

There is a direct relationship between the quality of child-teacher interactions and child-teacher ratio in the classroom; the lower the child and teacher ratios in the classroom, the higher the quality of observed interactions and greater the ability to provide rich, meaningful care and learning. I found myself as a teacher being naturally more responsive, patient, and sensitive to the individual children in my classroom when I had lower ratios. I see this as well with my own child’s teachers at the Yavapai College Del E. Webb Family Enrichment Center and lab school.

"Teachers are the guardians of spaces that allow students to breathe and be curious and explore the world and be who they are without suffocation. Students deserve one place where they can rumble with vulnerability and let their hearts exhale.” — Brené Brown

The center is known statewide for providing individualized attention and care to the children in their care. The program’s organizers note on its website, “we strive to provide each child with the individualized attention and support needed to enable them to grow and learn to their fullest potential! To achieve this, our program offers small group sizes and low staff-to-child ratios.” While many factors contribute to the quality of early-childhood classrooms and the relationships within, we know that social and emotional support, low child-to-teacher ratios and age-appropriate academic support are key components in supporting high-quality early environments.

There is an enormous need for child and family support at large in Yavapai County. Currently 25% of the children in our area are living in poverty, with an overwhelming need for childcare; over half of all families in the state have all parents in the home working full time. The Family Enrichment Center is currently the only licensed center serving infants in Prescott. First Things First, Arizona’s statewide early-childhood agency, notes that one of the few indicators of quality and a recommended question to ask in considering a childcare setting is that of ratios and maximum group sizes. Either can be used as a gauge to measure the level of support and connection children will receive while in care. Quality First notes how “Quality programs have smaller teacher-child ratios and limit group sizes.”

In my 18 years in family and community services I have found early education and care is both foundational and fundamental for brain development, lifelong learning and the ultimate success of children. While we as humans are resilient and can overcome great adversity, we are also incredibly impressionable; early setbacks play a significant role in future outcomes and are expensive to repair later in life. These investments are not only ethical, but experts agree they are fiscally responsible. Neglecting this need is detrimental to the structure of our education, family and economic systems. To the core of my being I believe we not only have a moral obligation to support children in this way, but we aso owe it to our community and future together in Prescott.