Pritzker signs bill creating new Department of Early Childhood as advocates eagerly anticipate improvements to the system

However, there are still areas where the state’s plans to boost early childhood programs fall short, including an “insufficient investment” in the early childhood education workforce, according to Neoma Nagahawatte, who works with Farwig as the assistant director of advocacy at Illinois Action for Children.

Nagahawatte is particularly concerned about a scholarship program established in 2021 with federal COVID-relief dollars to address the shortage of qualified early childhood educators.

Nagahawatte said early childhood education advocates in Illinois requested $60 million in this year’s budget to fund the scholarships, but the state only allocated $5 million.

“This cut will impact Illinois’ ability to meet childcare needs across the state, which perpetuates our current childcare crisis,” Nagahawatte said.

She anticipates the shortage of funds leading to one setback after the next, including fewer scholarship applications for associate’s and bachelor’s degrees in early education and “deep cuts” in the quality of services and supports available to students pursuing degrees in early childhood education. “We’re expecting to see that play itself out in the pipeline of early childhood educators going into the field, which inevitably contributes to the childcare desert,” she said.

Illinois Action for Children, which serves nearly 150,000 children and families annually by providing access to early childhood care and education opportunities, will monitor the impact of what she called “significantly reduced funding” going forward. This information will inform how they advocate in the next legislative session.

Kimberly Bianchini, a childcare provider and owner of Advance Preschool in Hoffman Estates, said the agency’s real-world, practical implications could be immense for resolving issues efficiently.

Bianchini said the needs at her preschool are often dire, and there is little supplemental support to navigate programs that help parents find funding and resources to send their children to daycare or preschool. The new agency, she said, will simplify access for providers like her who are servicing the highest-risk children.

“Right now, I have one person whose entire job is to support parents because we have so many cases and the paperwork is so difficult,” Bianchini said.

As a general resource, the state launched a website for the Department of Early Childhood where parents and providers can toggle through FAQs, resources and stay up to date on the agency’s evolution.

Acting Secretary Snopek’s term is temporary, Gov. Pritzker’s press secretary, Alex Gough, explained in an email to the Tribune. Snopek’s “temporary designation” is used when there’s a leadership transition, ongoing search, or, in this case, a new agency and search for a leader.

The appointment letter states that Snopek’s term expires on Aug. 23. Her annual salary is $214,000.

In 2023, Pritzker, who made early childhood education a focal point of his second term, implemented the multi-year Smart Start initiative to improve access to preschool and increase funding for childcare providers.

The 2025 budget also includes $45 million for the second year of a three-year pilot program to fill teacher vacancies, an increase of $10 million to $711 million for grant funding for college students, and an additional $75 million in grant funding for preschool enrollment.

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(The Tribune’s Olivia Olander contributed.)

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