Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney at PHLpreK’s second anniversary. Photo: Samantha Madera for the City of Philadelphia.

“PHLpreK has transformed the lives of my students, and it’s all thanks to the city’s sweetened drink tax. In 2016, leaders in Philadelphia united behind a bold approach to provide new opportunities to its most vulnerable and underprivileged kids to break the cycle of poverty, injustice, and inequity.

“The tax has generated $137 million in revenue, which has already had a significant impact.

“More than 2,000 new pre-K seats have been created, per the city’s count — with several thousand more on the way — and nearly half of these new seats have the highest quality ratings as identified by Pennsylvania’s Keystone Stars program. More than 200 new teachers have been hired at early childcare centers, two-thirds of which are owned by women and minorities.”

“Soda tax-funded preK will drive Philadelphia’s future,” an opinion piece by Meyata McMichael, a PHLPreK instructor, The Philadelphia Inquirer, March 13, 2019