Jacqueline Jones, senior advisor for early learning at the U.S. Department of Education, speaking Friday at the National Assocation for the Education of Young Children's annual conference in Orlando, officially announced the formation of the Office of Early Education at the DOE. The OEE, of which Jones will be the director, will operate within the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. Jones, as the DOE's leading official on early learning, oversees the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge.
In an essay in today's Huffington Post which said little more than early ed is super important, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, comments:
Our children deserve nothing less than a strong start to a life filled with opportunity, and it all starts with successful early learning programs. Through the courage, skill, and commitment of states across the country, early learning has already begun its transformation. An Office of Early Learning will allow our Department to better support their efforts, deepen public awareness of the impact of this work, and leverage early learning investments in ways that raise quality and expand access for more children.
In the coming weeks, I look forward to sharing more details on the role the Office of Early Learning will play in continuing the Department's commitment to providing all children with a world-class education.
Press information released by the DOE said:
In addition to the Challenge, the Department administers several programs that provide support for early learning including Title I, IDEA, and recently established programs such as Promise Neighborhoods and the Investing in Innovation fund. As proposed, the Office of Early Learning will operate as a central resource to ensure that support for high-quality early learning and development programs is coordinated within the Department and across federal agencies, in addition to managing outreach to the early learning community.
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