Missouri Parents as Teachers Advocates Rally to Restore Funding During Day at the Capitol
Posted: 02/24/2010
Missouri legislators will learn how the proposed $4.1 Million budget cut in FY2011 will hurt Missouri's children
ST. LOUIS (Feb. 24, 2010) - Parents as Teachers advocates from across the state will converge on Jefferson City on Wednesday, Feb. 24, for a Missouri Parents as Teachers Day at the Capitol. Sponsored by the National Center for Parents as Teachers, the event creates an opportunity for advocates to discuss with state legislators how important Parents as Teachers is to Missouri families and to make personal pleas to restore Governor Nixon's proposed $4.1 million cut. The day will include a Parents as Teachers rally on the front steps of the Capitol building at 10:30 a.m. and one-on-one meetings with legislators.
Parents as Teachers has proven itself as a results-oriented, money-saving approach to early childhood and parent education. On Feb. 24, advocates will speak to Missouri senators, representatives and other decision-makers about how Parents as Teachers saves taxpayer dollars by detecting developmental delays early and making sure that kids are ready for school...essential components to ensuring a strong future for the state. Parents as Teachers also reaches Missouri's most vulnerable families-more than 60% of Parents as Teachers families in Missouri meet a high needs characteristic such as low-income, teen parent, or single parent.
"The $3.4 million budget cut in FY10 resulted in fewer visits, fewer families served, fewer screenings and fewer delays detected," says Susan S. Stepleton, president and CEO of the National Center for Parents as Teachers. "The Governor's $4.1 million cut would force further service cuts and could eliminate as many as 475 Missouri jobs."
Last year the National Center for Parents as Teachers celebrated 25th years of helping Missouri parents embrace their role as their child's first and best teacher. The National Center supports Parents as Teachers programs through training, research and program support.
About the National Center for Parents as Teachers
Based in St. Louis, the National Center for Parents as
Teachers is the resource base and backbone of Parents as Teachers, a parent
education and early childhood development program serving parents throughout
pregnancy until their child enters kindergarten, usually age 5. The nonprofit National Center oversees approximately 3,000
programs offering Parents as Teachers services nationwide as well as in several
other countries. For more information about Parents as Teachers, visit www.ParentsAsTeachers.org.
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For more information, contact:
Pat Simpson
(314) 432-4330, ext. 283
www.ParentsAsTeachers.org
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