Pritzker Aims to Create New Early Childhood Focused Agency
Gov. JB Pritzker is proposing a new state agency focused on early childhood education.
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Governor JB Pritzker Tuesday proposed creating a new state agency charged with overseeing early childhood education, but didn’t identify any fixes to the troubled Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).
The proposal combines early childhood education programs currently under the umbrellas of DCFS, the Department of Human Services (DHS), and the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
The new agency would bring multiple programs under one roof.
The Early Childhood Block Grant at ISBE, which funds Preschool for All and the Prevention Initiative home-visiting program
The Child Care Assistance Program, Home-Visiting, and Early Intervention services at DHS
Day care licensing currently managed by DCFS
“We need a governance system that is unified in its approach to serving families, working with providers, and promoting equity,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker also issued an executive order Tuesday directing the three agencies to begin working with his new early childhood transition director, Ann Whalen, to ramp up the proposed agency. Whalen is director of policy for education advocacy group Advance Illinois. Whalen previously worked for the U.S. Department of Education and Chicago Public Schools.
Funding for the position and beginning activities of the new agency aren’t immediately clear.
Formally establishing and funding the new agency would require legislative approval. It is not expected to be brought forward during the legislative veto session that began this week in Springfield.
None of Pritzker’s proposals reform the beleaguered Department of Children and Family Services. An audit of the agency last month showed the agency failed to immediately report investigations of child abuse, the death or serious injury of a child, torture, malnutrition, and sexual abuse to state’s attorney’s offices within the mandated 24-hour time frame.
DCFS Director Marc Smith announced his resignation a few days later.
Meanwhile, at a news conference in Chicago Tuesday, Pritzker continued to punt action on the Invest in Kids program to the General Assembly, showing again he’s unlikely to put his political weight behind an effort to preserve or kill the program.