Title
Ordinance amending Chapter 147, Department of Neighborhood Empowerment and Equal Opportunity, adding Section 147.04 Office of Early Childhood.
Body
Whereas, it is the responsibility of the Council of the City of Pittsburgh to protect the health, safety, and welfare of all of citizens and provide equal opportunity for success for all, and
Whereas, the City of Pittsburgh is home to over 15,000 children age 5 and under, and families across our City struggle to provide high-quality early childhood experiences for these young children, and
Whereas, at-risk children who do not receive a high-quality early-childhood education are 25 percent more likely to drop out of school, 50 percent more likely to be placed in special education, 60 percent more likely to never attend college and 70 percent more likely to be arrested for a violent crime; and
Whereas, investing in children before kindergarten is much more cost-effective than spending tax dollars to address problems later in their lives, and
Whereas, Pennsylvania spends almost $2 billion a year to house, feed and provide 24-hour supervision for state prisoners - more than $35,000 per inmate and we spend only a fraction as much - $340 million annually - on early childhood education; and
Whereas, providing high quality early childhood experiences requires collaboration between municipal, school district, and community entities, and;
Whereas, high quality early childhood experiences requires understanding the perspectives and fostering partnerships between early education providers and their employees, parents, families, and young children, and
Whereas, to address inequities in our society, we must work together to give every one of our young children access to a high quality early childhood experience,
Therefore be it resolved that the City Council of the City of Pittsburgh shall establish the Office of Early Childhood as follows:
Be it resolved by the Council of the City of Pittsburgh as follows:
Section 1. Amending Chapter 147, Department of Neighborhood Empowerment and Equal Opportunity, adding Section 147.04 Office of Early Childhood.
§ 147.04 - OFFICE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD
The Office of Early Childhood shall be located within the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment and Equal Opportunity. The Office of Early Childhood shall establish and maintain a formal memorandum of understanding with the Pittsburgh Public Schools and the Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children to work together and share funding sources to improve services and opportunities for Pittsburgh’s population of young children, ages 0-5 years, and their families. This shall include liaising with childcare providers, families, and children to improve municipal services to meet their needs and improving access to high-quality early childhood experiences for young children and their families.