俄勒冈州长 Kotek 与社区领袖座谈扩大可负担托儿与学前教育：托儿「不是奢侈品，而是生命线」
俄勒冈州 Multnomah 县 Gresham 市，俄勒冈州州长 Tina Kotek 的「幼儿保育与学习系统圆桌会议」10 月 23 日在当地 Harmony Montessori 学校举行座谈，Kotek 与社区领袖、家长代表讨论如何扩大可负担托儿与学前教育。她在会上说，托儿「不是奢侈品，而是生命线」。
州众议员 Jules Walters 出席了座谈。她讲述了自己 20 多年前作为四个孩子的母亲、因难以找到可负担的托儿而辞去工作的经历：「我知道找可负担的托儿有多难。我们的系统正在挣扎，这些都不是新问题。」她说，要确保俄勒冈的家庭能过得下去，不让人们被迫离开职场。
Kotek 在会上与孩子们一起坐在地板上做手工，并认真记录与会者的发言。她说，俄勒冈已经有一些非常重要的项目，「但这还不够，我们需要一致性和可靠性」。她说：「每位家长都应该知道，俄勒冈重视你的孩子。当你想要婴幼儿照护或学前教育机会时，我们是你坚强的后盾。」
座谈中，与会者提出，儿童能获得的资源不应取决于家庭住在哪里、收入多少；托儿与学前项目应提供多语言服务、覆盖全州各地；项目应包含文化元素，让所有孩子都感到安全和受欢迎。
Multnomah 县的「全民学前教育」（Preschool for All）项目在会上受到肯定。该项目为 3 岁和 4 岁儿童提供免费、具文化回应性的学前教育，本学年资助了 3,800 多个学位，目标是到 2030 年为所有有意愿的家庭提供学位。Kotek 说：「Multnomah 县发生的事情正在改变人们的生活，但它不应该是俄勒冈唯一有这种项目的地方。」
在联邦政府削减 Head Start 等早期儿童项目之际，普及托儿的资金来源目前尚未确定。Kotek 说，俄勒冈「正朝着相反的方向前进，我们要加倍努力，让家庭和孩子拥有茁壮成长所需的一切」。她说，当务之急是先建立一套适用于所有人的系统：「我们需要先知道目标是什么，再弄清楚如何为之买单。」
这一圆桌会议是 Kotek 今年早些时候召集的，由儿童研究所（Children's Institute）首席执行官 Kali Thorne Ladd 与早期儿童系统专家 Sara Mickelson 共同主持，负责评估州政府资助的早期学习项目、找出缺口，就在全州 36 个县实现 3 岁和 4 岁儿童普及学前教育提出建议。州长办公室此前表示，全州普及托儿的目标是在 2031 年实现。据「前五年基金会」（First Five Years Fund）估计，托儿难题每年给俄勒冈经济造成约 14 亿美元损失。
来源：GSM·美国
Gov. Kotek, Community Leaders Discuss Expanding Affordable Childcare and Preschool: 'Not a Luxury, It Is a Lifeline'
GRESHAM, Multnomah County, Oregon — Governor Tina Kotek's Early Childhood Care and Learning System Roundtable met at Harmony Montessori school in Gresham on October 23, where Kotek sat down with community leaders and parents to discuss expanding affordable childcare and preschool across Oregon. Childcare, she said, is "not a luxury, it is a lifeline."
State Rep. Jules Walters attended the gathering. She described stepping away from her career more than 20 years ago as a mother of four who could not find affordable care: "I know how hard it is to find affordable childcare. Our system is struggling and these are not new issues." She said Oregon families should be thriving, and people should not be forced to leave the workforce.
Kotek joined the children on the floor for activities and took notes as participants shared stories and ideas. She said Oregon has some really important programs, "but it's not enough. We need consistency and reliability." "It is important for every parent to know that Oregon values your child," she added. "When you want infant care or preschool access, we have your back."
Participants said the resources a child can access should not depend on where a family lives or how much money they make; programs should be offered in multiple languages and be available across the state; and programs should include cultural components so all children feel safe and welcome.
Multnomah County's Preschool for All drew praise at the gathering. The program connects 3- and 4-year-olds to free, culturally responsive, inclusive preschools; it funded more than 3,800 seats in the current school year, with a goal of offering spots to all interested families by 2030. "What we have in Multnomah County is changing lives, but it should not be the only place in Oregon that has it," Kotek said.
Where funding for a universal program will come from remains unclear, as the federal government cuts programs such as Head Start. "We are going the other direction in Oregon," Kotek said. "We are doubling down so families and kids have what they need to thrive." She said the immediate need is creating a system that works for everyone: "We need to know what the goal is before we figure out how to pay for it."
Kotek convened the roundtable earlier this year. It is chaired by Kali Thorne Ladd, CEO of the Children's Institute, and Sara Mickelson, a national expert in early childhood systems, and is tasked with assessing state-funded early learning programs, identifying gaps and recommending a path to universal preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds in all 36 Oregon counties. The governor's office has previously stated 2031 as the target for implementing universal childcare statewide. The First Five Years Fund estimates that childcare challenges cost Oregon's economy about $1.4 billion a year.
Source: GSM·America
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：俄勒冈州州长 Tina Kotek。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons（Tony Miller 摄，公共领域）。 / Photo: Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, via Wikimedia Commons (photo by Tony Miller, public domain).
