By ERICA ESTEP
6 News Education Reporter
KNOXVILLE (WATE) - Knox County District Attorney General Randy Nichols says early childhood development programs pay off, and they can keep kids from growing up to be criminals.
The non-profit group Fight Crime: Invest in Kids released a report it says shows early education cuts crime and saves taxpayer dollars.
Cited in the research is a long-term study of an early childhood development program in Michigan. Researchers found that at-risk children who did not attend the high quality program were 86% more likely to end up behind bars than those who did.
Nichols spent Friday morning reading to at-risk kids in a Head Start program at North Ridge Crossing Center in Knoxville.
"Our goal has been to try to direct legislation such that we will invest in early education, early childhood education because we are convinced that it is the most prudent way to prevent people from committing a crime," Nichols said.
Head Start teacher Erica Kane says her kids at North Ridge Crossing are learning through play. "We get them ready by teaching them ABCs and 123s and fine motor skills, and gross motor skills, but we do it while we're playing with them," she explained.
The three and four year olds also learn basic skills like how to hold a pencil, how to share and how to get along socially before heading to school.
Programs like this get federal funding, and those trained to teach them can't imagine drastic cuts.
"Absolutely not," said Kane. "I think it would be very detrimental to these kids. These kids especially coming from low income families really need these programs."
Nichols says what they're learning in the classroom can keep them out of jail.
"I was just in Nashville Monday with members of the department of corrections. Do you know they plan prison construction on the reading ability at third grade in this state? That's how we determine what prison capacity we're going to need in the future," Nichols said. "I think that says it all."
Nichols points out that Tennessee taxpayers are spending more than $644 million a year on corrections.
By contrast, Tennessee spends $85 million on Pre-K for about 18,000 four year olds. "That means we spend almost eight times as much on criminals as we do on at-risk children," Nichols noted.
The DA also called on lawmakers to keep the early intervention programs off the chopping block. "As far as I'm concerned we can cut the salaries of the members of Congress before we cut a penny from this," Nichols said.
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tennessee) says he believes that at a time when Washington is borrowing 40 cents of every dollar it spends, Congress needs to set priorities, and of course one of those priorities should be education.
Sen. Bob Corker (R- Tennessee) says he believes "it's more important than ever that federal resources are being used wisely and effectively, especially when it comes to education."
"As far as I'm concerned we can cut the salaries of the members of Congress before we cut a penny from this," said Knox County District Attorney General Randy Nichols.
