When communities promote the well-being of young children through early care and education and other services, the return is significant.
Investing in young children:
- Yields a high rate of return on investment
- Spurs community and economic development
- Provides economic opportunity for individuals
- Improves the quality of community life
Many leaders in the St. Louis area are beginning to
recognize the value of investing in children. Won’t
you join the discussion?
Invest in Kids … For our future and theirs.
Yields a high rate of return on investment
• Economists at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve calculate
that early childhood education produces an inflation-adjusted
annual return of 16%.
• Every dollar invested in pre-school produces $8.74 in benefits
to society.
Spurs community economic development
• Strong life and job skills are critical factors in fostering economic
development and attracting industry.
• Early childhood education is a large, growing industry employing
over 14,000 people in the St. Louis metro area.
• The availability of child care enables 48,000 other workers to get,
keep and be productive at their jobs.
Provides economic opportunity for individuals
• Children who receive a quality early childhood education are
more likely to succeed in school and, as a result, earn a good
income, own their own home and pay taxes.
Improves the quality of community life
• Investing in the positive development of all children reduces
educational failure, crime, drug use and violence---while lowering
costs for health care, social services and remedial education.
• Today’s children are tomorrow’s leaders of society and our future
workforce. How we develop our children today shapes the
St. Louis region of tomorrow.