When I was teaching, I taught a brilliant student named Aiya. I had lots of brilliant students, but Aiya was one of those incredibly rare nine-year-olds who reads at least a novel a day and remembers everything you tell her. Then one day Aiya and Amani stopped coming to school. Eventually I found out that they had been in danger. About 2 months later they were back! But there was a problem – a big problem. Amani was no longer enrolled in Prekindergarten, and there wasn’t a spot for her.
When I was teaching, I taught a brilliant student named Aiya. I had lots of brilliant students, but Aiya was one of those incredibly rare nine-year-olds who reads at least a novel a day and remembers everything you tell her. Every afternoon she would take a book home and read it aloud to her 4-year-old sister Amani. Amani was in Ms. McClure’s Prekindergarten class (which was just down the hall) and she loved to stop by our classroom to tell us what the letter of the day was, or sing us whatever number song she had learned that morning.
Then one day Aiya and Amani stopped coming to school. I called home – no answer. Eventually I found out that they had been in danger. Without going into too many details, their mother needed to urgently withdraw the girls from school and take them out of state. About 2 months later they were back! When I saw those two little smiling ladies get off of bus 77 I thought my heart would burst with happiness.
But there was a problem – a big problem. Amani was no longer enrolled in Prekindergarten, and there wasn’t a spot for her. You see, there were only 40 Prekindergarten spots and a waitlist with enough kids to fill up two more classrooms. Once Amani was withdrawn she lost her spot. Her family (like most at our school) lived well below the poverty line, so paying for a slot at a private Prekindergarten was not an option.
So instead of putting on her uniform, coming to school, sitting on the alphabet carpet, learning letters, sharing toys, playing with her friends, taking turns, using her indoor voice, and everything else Pre-K students do, she was at home. The whole waitlist of kids were at home.
I chose to tell Amani’s story because it perfectly highlights why we need to increase investment in early learning. Yes, this is one story about one small town, but across the country there are countless four-year-old denied the opportunity to attend Prekindergarten. I believe that every child in this country deserves the opportunity to enter Kindergarten ready for success, but right now that is not happening. The President’s plan to expand the availability of high-quality early learning experiences, starting with the most vulnerable children is one that I proudly support – and I know Aiya, Amani, and their mom do too.