The State Needs a Department of Early Childhood-

From The Oklahoman

There are several challenges facing Oklahoma children when it comes to care, health, education and support services. That is why I believe Oklahoma families and children would greatly benefit by creating an early childhood department.

Currently, there are 13 states that have developed early childhood focused departments. These departments are focused on the holistic development and support of children from birth until grade school with the ability to track outcomes for accountability of state funds.

We know that from birth through age 5, children experience the most growth. Setting kids up for success in school has long-term results such as higher literacy rates, longer life expectancy and workforce participation.

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The barriers Oklahoma faces are similar to the states that have consolidated their early childhood governance: Poor physical and mental health rankings, half our families live in a childcare desert, and two-thirds of Oklahoma counties are health care deserts. But the states, such as New Mexico and Ohio (who participated in my recent Interim Study), are already seeing positive results from their consolidated focused approach.

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An early childhood department would consolidate, streamline and improve existing state services. Currently, Oklahoma has early childhood services spread out between five different agencies. This fractured approach is keeping us from reaching our full potential as a state. Now, some of my colleagues believe that creating a new department would “grow government,” but the states that have successfully consolidated departments have found efficiencies by enmeshing existing services into one department focused solely on the development of children. With an early childhood department, states have less fragmented services and easier ways of tracking the needs and progress of children and families.

States that have already implemented early childhood departments are experiencing great success, which allows me to believe that we can build on their successes to create a department for Oklahoma children and families that balances family-centered services with data-driven outcomes. Other states’ early childhood departments have worked to address improving school readiness, improving childcare access, and lowering the rate of maternal and infant mortality.

Lastly, we need to recognize that creating a new department with the collaboration that it requires will take time. The states that presented in my recent Interim Study allotted up to 18 months for consolidation. This is why it is essential to have state leaders championing this issue in order to expedite the process of creating an agency dedicated to child health, care, early education and intervention services.

Oklahoma is not new to the idea of agency consolidation. We did so with Service Oklahoma within the last few years. There was a need in our state, and the legislature responded. We can do so again with Early Childhood. The government is designed to work for people and it is up to state leaders, myself included, to work toward solutions that will improve the lives of Oklahoma families and children.

Trish Ranson, a Democrat from Stillwater, is currently serving in her fourth term in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. Prior to running for office in 2018, Representative Ranson taught elementary music for 15 years at Westwood Elementary in Stillwater and served as a conductor with the OSU Youth Choir.