Chapter 8, Part II: Assuring All Children Start School Ready to Learn

On the evening of September 16, 1993, (then) U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders? spoke in St. Louis at the invitation of the Missouri Public Health Association.? She explained that goal one of Goals 2000, that all children will start school ready to learn, included that every child would be a planned and wanted child. She stated that if a child was planned and wanted, it would be seen to that the child would start school “ready to learn.”

To accomplish this goal she promoted collaboration and partnership? between the government, school, church, home and community. She also spoke of the need for school-based clinics, school/community-linked services, and Norplant. [1]

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his type of “collaboration” is similar to that implemented in third world nations by the United Nations.? When a village would meet their “goal” of sterilizations and population reduction, they would receive a village well.? In the United States the village well has been substituted with federal dollars and programs such as early childhood? and Medicaid.? Those involved in early childhood programs are not aware of their assistance in reaching the government’s goal of seeing to it that all children are planned and wanted as defined by the government, so as to “start school ready to learn.”

Family information collected through early childhood? programs not only helps the school district prepare for the future educational needs of the district, but may also serve to verify and identify those families who may be at-risk? of not meeting the government’s “health” goals.? This includes “reducing all unintended pregnancies? to no more than 30%,” which is defined to include “live births and fetal deaths to females younger than 18 plus live births and fetal deaths with spacing less than 12 months to females ages 18-34, plus out-of-wedlock births to females with less than a college education.”? Pregnancies closer than 18 months are to be reduced to no more than 10%.[2]

? Early childhood? programs assist families and their children in starting school “ready to learn” by testing, screening, or assessing children in areas of knowledge and comprehensive (physical, emotional, social, and psychological) “health.”? Schools may be reimbursed? with Medicaid funds? for providing “health screenings” also provided through early childhood programs for pregnant women and their children from birth through age 21.? Such women and their families are identified and provided intervention? early in a child’s development in an attempt to assure that the child starts school “ready to learn.”

Federally funded Early Childhood programs may require matching state and local dollars.? States provide the administration and legislation (such as Missouri’s SB658 Early Childhood Development Act) to implement federal mandates? as a condition for receiving the federal funding.? Implementation of these mandates takes place through local universities, school districts and communities.? You pay for it through increased taxes.

Parent educators associated with some early childhood? programs observe the child’s home environment during home visits.? Are they judging whether parents are providing adequate care, whether physical and/or emotional “abuse,” or “neglect” is taking place? (See the chapter titled “Lexicon Is Lingo” for the definitions of emotional and educational neglect).? By law, such people MUST report suspected abuse.?

Early childhood? testing programs include: home surveys completed by the parent, a “Behavioral Review Sheet” completed by the tester, a “Play Assessment” which includes observation guidelines for cognitive development, a battery of health screenings, “Developmental Profile,” Developmental Indicators for the Assessment of Learning? (DIAL,) and a registration form which requests the child’s social security number? and the names and birth dates of younger children in the home.?

The Children’s Defense Fund? (CDF,) founded by Marian Wright Edelman, is a non-profit organization funded largely by the population control? oriented organizations such as the Carnegie Foundation? and the Rockefeller? Foundation.? The Children’s Defense? Fund purports to be alarmed about ‘teenage pregnancy’ rates, pumps out statistics (many of them taken from the Alan Guttmacher Institute? reports) to support its claims — then concludes that ‘something must be done.’? However the recipes for accomplishing this goal as articulated and written by CDF representatives read like they came out of a Planned Parenthood? brochure and indeed, among the networking structure of the Children’s Defense? Fund, we find ample evidence of the hand of Planned Parenthood with input from PP’s research arm, the Alan Guttmacher Institute.? CDF works closely with the Washington, D.C. based Center for Population Options? which operates a center for training? staff for the clinics, the March of Dimes, the National Education Association and others like the Ounce of Prevention? Fund.”[3]

The Children’s Defense? Fund? is also a member of the National Organization On Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenting.? See the chapters titled “Every Child a Planned and Wanted Child By Whom???” and “Local Connections to National Population Controllers.”

A Children’s Defense? National Meeting titled “Stopping the War Against American Children” was held March 6 and 7, 1994.? The keynote speaker was U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno.? One attendee’s notes from the Saturday, March 7 meeting reads as follows:

“Human Development begins at birth

Children are unsupervised

‘Invest in children and the continuation of their life.’

Invest early - ages 0-3

‘Unless we invest in children, we will never have a future.’

‘We wait too long to intervene in families.’

‘Beware the fabric of community around children.’

Medical programs need to go into the school, weave into the continuation of life (does this replace Mom and Dad?)

Provide health care reform for children to provide preventive care

Most formative time is 0-3.? ‘Have too often assigned this responsibility to the family.? Institutions to be made, designed for Edu-Care 0-3, just as schools K-12.? Develop:

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ‘full service schools

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? conflict resolution

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? safe schools

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? teach learned response

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? provide prevention

‘teams intervene in homes to help with prevention–speak softly, marshal facts”[4] (emphasis added).

Educare? is a prevention? component of the state’s welfare reform package.? “Educare is an effort to improve the early learning experiences of low-income children (primarily 0-3 years of age) who are not yet attending school so that more children enter Kindergarten ‘ready to learn.’? This approach requires a collaboration among parents, child-care providers, schools and other entities serving young children in a community and requires that services be school-linked although not necessarily school-based–Educare objectives as explained by the Missouri Department of Social Services ? may include [among others]:

- Coordinating activities with Missouri’s Parents as Teachers? program.

- Assuring that all children are linked to health care and have access to preventive health services.

‘Child care, parenting, health care and education–are–parts of the whole environment children need, from birth, to grow and develop.? Establishing linkages between these four both in policy and in program will help to ensure every child receives a solid foundation.’”[5] (Emphasis added).

Through a public-private partnership? between the Danforth Foundation, and the Department of Social Services, the University of Missouri-Columbia’s College of Education and Human Environmental Services will serve as the contractor to provide the specially designed Educare? curriculum.

“Local individuals at each of the sites will be hired by the university to coordinate educational and training? efforts for parents, care-givers and teachers.? Area schools will serve as the base for the training and education activities.? The University’s extension services, libraries and computerized? information banks will also be utilized and an 800-number phone system will provide instant information and referral? for individuals seeking help and assistance.”[6] (Emphasis added).

“The primary focus of Educare? is on children 0-3 years of age to improve their cognitive skills, health, basic hygiene, social skills, and values? education’’[7] (emphasis added).? Isn’t birth a bit young for values education?? ? No, not when one of the purposes of early childhood? programs is to identify, reach, educate and refer parents in an effort to change their values and attitudes? in order to assure that their child(ren) start school ready to learn.? ?

A pamphlet titled Our Children’s Self-Esteem—Thoughts for Parents and Teachers was available in a district’s early education office.? The pamphlet is published by Network Publications, a division of ETR.? “ETR (Education, Training and Research Associates)–began its corporate life as the Education Department of the Santa Cruz? Chapter of Planned Parenthood.”[8]? ETR Associates/Network Publications is listed in The Comprehensive School Health Sourcebook which may be found in the Professional Library of at least one of St. Louis County’s largest school districts.

Early childhood? programs are a perfect vehicle through which to provide collaboration between government, community, school, church, university, home and business to implement predetermined government health and education standards/goals/mandates? and outcomes? from womb to tomb.? However, these goals and outcomes may not necessarily be consistent with the values? of your family.

What are the emotional and social consequences of “weaning” children from parents at such an early age?? The increased cost to taxpayers (many who have no need for such programs) is millions of dollars.? In time, will a family pregnant with a child whose spacing is less than that mandated? or “recommended” by the government be sterilized as a condition for health care, services, programs, assistance, etc.?? Some are recommending the one-family, one-child policy currently implemented in the Peoples Republic of China.

Participation in early childhood? programs such as Educare, First Steps, Parents as Teachers, Saturday School, Head Start, Even Start, Healthy Foundations, HCY (Healthy Children and Youth), and many others are voluntary? today.? Tomorrow they may be mandatory in order to meet Goals 2000.

There is much good to be said for these programs.? They teach parenting skills, provide professional assessments regarding a child’s physical, emotional, psychological, social and academic development, and recommend referrals? for special services when necessary.? Home visits are also arranged.? Such programs are an excellent avenue for identifying families who are “at-risk” of not meeting mandated? education and health goals, who are then referred to community resources and followed up on.? Some programs are used to make super baby-sitters.

[1] (Then) U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders’ dinner speech, Henry VIII Restaurant; St. Louis, MO; Sept. 16, 1993; Missouri Public Health Association.

[2] Healthy Missourians 2000 Vol. II, Nov. 1992, Missouri Department of Health, p.139.

[3] “What Is The Children’s Defense Fund?” Human Life Alliance of Minnesota, Inc.

[4] Notes taken during keynote address by U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno titled “Stopping the War Against American Children.” Children’s Defense Fund National Meeting, Mar. 6-7, 1994.

[5] “Educare Informational Sheet,” Missouri Governor’s Office.

[6] “Carnahan Announces Five Rural Sites for Educare Project,” news release, Nov. 3, 1994, Gov. Mel Carnahan’s office.

[7] “Designing Educare Educare Concept Paper,” a handout for Regional Meetings in St. Louis, Sept. 7 and Kansas City, MO on Sept. 8, 1994.

[8] “Who’s Selling Sex in Public Schools?” Citizen Magazine, Focus on the Family, Dec. 1989.