LB773 Will Create an Early Childhood Education Workforce Task Force

by | Jan 14, 2016

Nebraska faces a shortage of high-quality early childhood educators to meet the needs of our youngest children at risk of failing in school. This shortage has real implications on the ability of local communities to respond to the needs of their young families who often rely on child care, Head Start and preschool programs to help support their child’s development.

Senator John Stinner of Gering introduced LB773 to the Nebraska Legislature on January 7. LB773 creates the Early Childhood Workforce Development Task Force which brings together leaders from the business community, the early childhood education field (including child care, Head Start, and school districts), higher education, state government and the private sector to assess the current early childhood workforce and make recommendations for growing this workforce. First Five Nebraska worked with Senator Stinner to craft this bill, which is a step toward the goal of reaching all Nebraska's children at risk. 

The task force will be charged with documenting the need for early childhood education professionals in Nebraska and the competencies necessary to close the achievement gap for Nebraska children at risk of failing in school. In addition, the task force will submit a report to the Governor and Legislature of findings and recommendations to address the preparation and training of early childhood education professionals.

No Fiscal Impact
The work of the task force will be organized and facilitated by private resources to eliminate any fiscal impact to the state. First Five Nebraska looks forward to working with members of the Education Committee and all state senators to take this important step toward closing the achievement gap for Nebraska’s most vulnerable children.

The Legislature's Education Committee will hold a hearing for LB733 Tuesday, January 19, at 1:30 p.m. in Room 1525 at the State Capitol.

Inforrmation about LB773 on the Nebraska Legislature's website

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