Yesterday Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick released a $30.5 billion state budget for fiscal 2012 (House 1). The governor’s FY12 budget proposes $570 million in reductions. The state also faces an expected budget gap of more than $1.5 billion, with no federal stimulus dollars and limited state reserves.

Despite the challenging fiscal climate, the governor prioritized and protected investments in high-quality early education. The Department of Early Education and Care was funded at $499 million, with many line items maintaining funding at their current levels. In addition, the full-day kindergarten grant program was level funded, and the state scholarship line item, which funds the Early Childhood Educators Scholarship, received an overall increase of $1.8 million. Governor Patrick’s budget also recognizes the important role that early literacy and the Department of Early Education and Care’s newly adopted Quality Rating and Improvement System play in closing the achievement gap. We applaud the governor for his commitment to building a foundation of high-quality learning beginning at birth. Click here for details on early education and care items in the governor’s budget recommendations.

Please join us for a conference call at 1 p.m. or 6 p.m. on Tuesday, February 1, to review the governor’s proposed budget. Tom Weber from the Executive Office for Education will join us for the 1 p..m. call. RSVP and receive instructions for the 1 p.m. call or the 6 p.m. call.

House 1 is the first step in the FY12 state budget process. We look forward to continuing to work with the governor and Legislature to ensure that children in Massachusetts have access to high-quality early education and become proficient readers by the end of third grade, a benchmark that strongly predicts their chances of success in school and beyond.