By Jack Kresnak

Like many Michiganders, I was surprised and pleased when Governor Rick Snyder said this during his State of the State Address on January 19:

“As I said earlier, we must do more to help students achieve academic success. We’ve been spending money without delivering results to give our young people a bright future. It is time that we view our educational system which runs from prenatal to lifelong learning. It’s time to start talking about P-20 instead of just K-12. We need to establish a system that focuses on real achievement for all of our children. We cannot leave children behind without the tools for success in their adult lives, but we also need to encourage better and faster opportunities for children that can go farther and faster in our system.”

So, what is the “P-20” concept and why does Snyder believe it means “Prenatal to age 20?”

Michigan is one of only 12 states without an official task force or council devoted to aligning programming, funding and expectations from the earliest years of a child’s development, through the K-12 system, and into and through postsecondary education and workforce participation. These groups identify, create, incentivize and support interagency, public/private partnerships toward an end goal of educational and workforce success for all young people.

As a successful business executive, Snyder clearly understands the need to conceptualize development from beginning to end and that systems that are not aligned – both financially and programmatically – will not result in a favorable outcome.  The same is true for a child’s successful transition to adulthood – Michigan has seen far too many failures of our fractured and disconnected systems that are supposed to help children develop.

The states that have P-20 Councils – and many advocates for children – perceive those councils as part of a high quality system of public education. Unfortunately, the “P” in those councils typically means Pre-school or Pre-Kindergarten. Such a mindset neglects the critical first few years of life, the most significant period of growth and development of children’s brains – birth to age 3. Also, what happens in the womb is critical so adequate prenatal care for pregnant women is essential for a child to get a healthy start in life.  

Earlier last year, we at Michigan’s Children began talking about the P-20 concept and how that “P” should really mean “Prenatal.”  And I have made that point in several discussions with policymakers and others with what I thought was limited success – until now.

At last summer’s Sandbox Party rally organized by the Early Childhood Investment Corporation at the Breslin Center, both major party candidates for Governor appeared.  While waiting to go on stage to address the enthusiastic crowd with hundreds of boisterous children, Candidate Snyder was speaking with a group of child advocates when the P-20 concept came up.

“You know, Mr. Snyder, that when we say ‘P-20’ we don’t mean ‘preschool,’ we mean ‘prenatal to age 20’,” I said.  He looked at me and nodded, but didn’t really agree or disagree with my statement.

I don’t know whether I am the first or the only person to talk with Snyder about “Prenatal to 20,” but in my mind our new Governor appears to have done what good leaders and business executives do – he listened, he considered what he heard, and he chose to align his strategy with what makes sense to him.

So, we are excited that Governor Snyder has put the focus on the development of the whole child, beginning with adequate prenatal care for those babies’ mothers and ending with a path toward lifelong learning and success.

Michigan’s Children has an excellent “Issues” brief on P-20 Councils on our website.