The State of Wyoming will look to its own resources to boost early childhood learning and no longer pursue any federal funding. Governor Matt Mead made the announcement Tuesday, saying he had looked into the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Grant.

Mead has now reaffirmed his charge to members of the Wyoming Early Childhood State Advisory Council saying he wants Wyoming to be focused of providing high quality early learning programs.

“It is apparent to me that if we can support parents and recognize that education starts well before the first day of kindergarten we’ll be ahead of the game,” said Governor Mead. “I recognize there are needs when it comes to preparing our children to succeed in school and I am committed to working to ensure that Wyoming’s children are successful in kindergarten and beyond. But, we do not need to ask the federal government for millions of dollars until we need it and we would spend it to maximum effect.”

The Governor claims that the process of drafting the grant application was valuable in identifying differences and similarities in the way state agencies deliver services to young children. The process also helped Mead identify goals for moving forward:

  • Capitalize on the dedication and commitment of state agencies to improve the delivery of services to young children. Utilize PTAC (Planning Team for At-Risk Children) in an advisory capacity to move initiatives forward.
  • Discover ways to increase access to high quality early learning programs.
  • Align research, practice, and policy of all stakeholders so that all children are poised to succeed in kindergarten.

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