U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will deliver remarks on Wednesday, Sept. 17, during the Strong Start for Children event, starting at 9:30 a.m. ET in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. The National Women's Law Center and Moms Rising are sponsoring this event, "Early Learning Builds Our Future." Duncan will discuss the importance of investment in early learning and President Obama's Preschool for All initiative to build a strong foundation for our children to succeed in education, college and careers.
At the event the children will have the opportunity to exercise their early learning skills at several stations by spelling out early learning messages with the building blocks. Administration officials and legislators will be completing each relay station to earn a mini-college degree. The Strong Start Campaign for Children supports high-quality early learning opportunities for children in at risk families, which will ultimately help achieve better education health, social and economic outcomes.
President Obama is committed to providing high-quality early learning for every child, so that all children enter kindergarten ready to succeed in school and in life. The U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services have released applications for the $250 million Preschool Development Grants competition. The goal of Preschool Development Grants is to support states—including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico—in building, developing and expanding voluntary, high-quality preschool programs in high-need communities for children from low- and moderate-income families.