Based in Cary, North Carolina, the Hunt Institute was established in 2001 by four-term North Carolina Governor James B. Hunt Jr. to help governors, legislators, and other senior-level elected officials understand the critical issues in education in order to take action. In 2016, the institute became a nonprofit affiliated with the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University, broadening its work and furthering partnerships, outreach, and research that expanded into early learning. Former Virginia Secretary of Education Dr. Javaid Siddiqi serves as President and CEO of the education policy organization.

Below, Dr. Siddiqi discusses priorities of The Hunt Institute related to early care and education during the pandemic, the importance of convening to scale policy work, and where early childhood education goes from here.

What factors were in place that allowed the pandemic to hit early child care especially hard?

We should start with the truth. And the truth is that America's child care industry was operating on a broken model well before the pandemic. That’s something folks in the field, many stakeholders, including advocates and philanthropists, have known for years. The cost of quality care is more than most parents can reasonably afford. The early childhood workforce are predominantly women of color, who have been subsidizing the industry in the form of unlivable wages for decades. Providers have been operating on razor thin profit margins.

So when you think about how the industry teeters on the edge of financial ruin even in the best of times, COVID-19 has only exacerbated the problem. Policymakers that care about early childhood have been on this battleground for decades.

As of today, it's unclear if Congress will pass additional COVID relief designated for child care centers. How do we think about a framework for where we go from here?

The good news is, in the short term there is $10 billion in COVID relief on its way to the child care industry, which is desperately needed, but notably less than Congress allocated to places like movie theaters. So despite the fact that child care is literally the industry that enables the success of all others, it's still not regarded the same way. That said, we should not make light of the $10 billion that's coming. It’s a win.

For us, we see it as a two-step process. First, we need to stabilize the industry and enable it to survive the pandemic. Second, we need to prioritize sustainability for the long-term, which means a complete reimagining of the child care model.

We've been trying to talk to policymakers on both sides of the political aisle, and we have to create an understanding and build a coalition. We know the earliest years of life represent the single-most critical window of human development. But we spend vastly more on education for older children than we do for what we know are the most formative years. Thankfully, we’re seeing the narrative around early childhood education pick up a lot of steam, from additional public funding for preschool to wage priority for qualified early childhood educators. Those are just a few of the things we need to think about as practical solutions as we move forward.

Convening is such an important part of the work you do. What bright spots and learnings are you seeing emerge from the past few years?

We've been in existence for 20 years, and in the early childhood education space for four years. We’ve learned a lot about the advocacy community and the stakeholders that are in the space.

One of the things we brought to the table, and the reason I think we have been able to find success both with our partners, advocates, and also policymakers, is our tendency to speak legislative-ese a little bit differently. That’s been the case with us in K-12 and higher ed. We work diligently to understand each policymaker, in each context. Sometimes it’s local, sometimes state-based or regional, and certainly there is always a national context to build an early childhood caucus.

What do you predict will be the biggest opportunities and challenges when it comes to prioritizing early learning?

That we continue to inform people on the science of early childhood education, rather than referring to early childhood education as just “day care.” The more people understand the science of early learning, the more likely we are to be able to make substantive change.

I think the Biden Harris administration understands the science. I think anytime you can get the federal government leaning in, pushing in, or pushing behind—calling people to action—good things are going to happen. So, what I’m excited about is having that level of leadership from the federal government aligned to what’s happening in the states, where there’s a lot of bipartisan momentum building. I’m excited about potential synergies, which hopefully will result in a national call to action.

On a personal note, how are you impacted by the work you do? What gives you hope in your work in early care and education?

There’s reason to be very hopeful. We’re seeing a shift, with policymakers understanding the value of the early years on both sides of the aisle. We’re definitely moving at a different clip. There is broad-based, bipartisan support. Voters are overwhelmingly investing in education, and policymakers from across the political spectrum are finding common ground. You see media portraying politicians like they’re at odds. That’s not our reality.

I’m blessed that we work in an environment where we get a chance to see how people from diverse backgrounds—diverse political platforms, racial backgrounds, genders, and ethnicities—can come together. When presented with compelling data, research, and science, their responses become not, “I disagree,” but “how do I package this in a way that people understand it?”

How can readers get involved in supporting policy and advocacy around early childhood funding?

A lot of people just don't take time to engage with their own lawmakers, including local school boards, state houses (legislators, state senators, and house members), governor’s offices, and congressional figures.

Policymakers represent us. They need to hear from you. They actually want your feedback. So take time, make sure you get your voice heard. I think you’d be surprised how much of an impact one phone call or an individual email can actually make.

The Hunt Institute’s Dr. Javaid Siddiqi

To learn more about The Hunt Institute’s work, visit hunt-institute.org.

Bezos Family Foundation is proud to support Hunt Institute's work educating state leaders about early childhood development and sharing and uptake of effective state strategies, policies, and practices that support strong early learning for all children.