Association in 1989 established six national goals for education, with the first one being that by the year 2000, A all children in America will start school ready to learn. The Goals 2000 legislation was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1994, with the Readiness to Learn Goal tied to physical health and well being, access to high quality preschool programs, and training and support for parents. The Work Group adopted a model of school readiness developed by Rebecca Severeide, a committee member and a consultant in the field. In addition, it examines the family, community and school factors which support that development. Given the charge of examining the mutual interests of the city and the area school districts in this arena, the committee designed guiding principles to guide its work.
Children develop within the context of a family.
Families live and work in a community that has an obligation to and benefits from supporting the primary role of the family. There is both a current fiscal reality as well as economic benefit in preparing for the future. Approximately 12,000 preschool children per year participate in various park and community school classes, with some of the children taking more than one class. Discussion about this participation raised questions about outreach to home care providers, access to transportation, the possibility of including child care facilities as part of any new community center, and the ongoing commitment of the Parks Department for serving young children. The City of Portland Bureau of Human Resources is studying the feasibility of siting a child care facility on the main floor of the Portland Building.