Angela Farwig, a longtime advocate for early childhood education who leads Illinois Action for Children, believes the creation of the new Department of Early Childhood – signed into law Tuesday by Gov. J.B. Pritzker – will finally transform a system that has been historically undersupported.

The new agency represents a major step forward in the state’s mission to streamline childhood services into one place, making it easier for families and providers to access critical services and programs across the state.

“I think our early childhood system has been underfunded for a very long time, built on as resources came available,” said Farwig, vice president of public policy, advocacy and research for Illinois Action for Children. Combining early childhood services into one agency allows families a go-to resource for support and services for their children in their formative years, she said. “We really think that this can drive more understanding of the potential of these first couple of years (in a child’s life),” she said.

Previously, most early childhood services for children under 6 were split among three state agencies – the Illinois State Board of Education, the Illinois Department of Human Services, and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.

Some of the programs moving from the new agency will envelop formerly disparate services into one entity, including programs that pay for childcare costs so parents can work or attend school, “Preschool for All,” which makes preschool accessible for all three—and four-year-olds in the state, special education programming for children before they enter elementary school, and daycare licensing, among others.

Pritzker also named Irma Martinez Snopek, a former Illinois State Board of Education officer, acting secretary for the new agency.

State legislators set aside $14 million to create the new agency when they passed a $53.1 billion budget in June. At Tuesday’s bill signing, Pritzker said whether the new agency will require additional funding once established is unclear.

“I know there are people who want to complain about creating a new agency and will that end up costing the taxpayers,” Pritzker told reporters. ”I think there’s real efficiency in taking programs that are disparately located in different departments and bringing them all together,” he said.

If the two-year developmental phase goes as smoothly as advocates hope, the new state agency will become operational in July 2026.

According to Farwig, the agency will give families and early childhood service providers a single entity to seek and offer resources. “Versus, ‘Oh I’ve got this issue with licensing that is over at the Department of Child and Family Services, Farwig said. “Instead of providers and families bouncing around between agencies to access resources and support.”

...continued

©2024 Chicago Tribune. Visit at chicagotribune.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.