Joseph J. Crisco, Jr.

Crisco Says 46 New School Readiness Options Coming to Three District Towns

Expanded Access Part of New Education Initiative

State Senator Joseph J. Crisco, Jr. (D-Woodbridge) today welcomed confirmation from the governor’s office of 46 new school readiness opportunities for eligible young students in Ansonia, Hamden and Naugatuck. The 21 new pre-kindergarten slots in Ansonia, ten in Hamden, and 15 in Naugatuck are among the 1,000 created statewide by this year’s new public education reform law.

Beyond these opportunities to help early learners acquire essential skills for kindergarten, the new law enhances primary school reading programs, creates or fortifies 20 school-based health centers, and establishes ten school-based family resource centers.

“When this bill was under consideration I felt strongly the state should maximize its commitment to school readiness, and I’m delighted the resulting law provides for 1,000 young students, 46 of them right here in the 17th Senatorial District,” Senator Crisco said. “These opportunities will help ensure these students enter kindergarten with adequate and age-appropriate communications and math skills.”

“Just as importantly, school readiness programs help teachers, parents, and students alike identify potential obstacles to learning so they can be addressed in a timely fashion, and they provide social and emotional readiness as well,” Senator Crisco added.

All told, $6.775 million in new funding for increased access to high-quality early childhood education is made available through PA 12-116, An Act Concerning Education Reform. The slots are to be administered through the Connecticut School Readiness program, a state Department of Education initiative designed to strengthen and increase access to high-quality preschool for children ages three and four.

“Connecticut has an additional, time-sensitive need to emphasize school readiness among its youngest students so every one of them is fully prepared to maximize his or her educational opportunity,” Senator Crsico said. “Connecticut has an untenable achievement gap between its highest-performing students and those who don’t perform as well. Early childhood education to ensure school readiness is the best antidote for that achievement gap.”