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Early childhood education is the key to the betterment of society.

Early childhood education is an urgent educational, economic and moral imperative. Without it, we face a long-term national economic security crisis.

Experts tell us that 90% of all brain development occurs by the age of five. If we don't begin thinking about education in the early years, our children are at risk of falling behind by the time they start Kindergarten.

If we expect our children to thrive at our colleges and universities, and succeed in our economy once they graduate - first we must make quality, affordable early childhood education accessible to all.

If we are serious about providing upward mobility and building a skilled workforce, pre-school is the place to begin.

Children without access to quality early education programs start kindergarten with an 18-month disadvantage, and that gap continues to widen. By the time they are in fourth grade, many cannot do math or read at grade level.

Studies have proven that early childhood education returns to society as much as $12 for every dollar invested. Our goal is to identify the most important development opportunities for children five years and younger, providing insight to transform early childhood education from a social policy issue into an economic imperative.

Early education is the type of issue politicians nod their heads at, and then when it comes time to make a tough decision, a financial trade-off, inevitably it's about the first item tossed from the table.

Children are ready to learn when they are ready to learn, not necessarily when their parents are ready to teach them.

Research has shown time and time again that infants who receive the high-quality child care and early education programs do better in school, have more developed social skills, and display fewer behavior problems.