Saturday, May 06, 2006
Another person from Minnesota that is an easily recognizable name in the early care and education field is Rob Grunewald. He has partnered with Art Rolnick to vocalize the economic impact of supporting early care and education for children and advocated of the economic importance of doing so. Mr Grunewald is the Regional Economic Analyst for the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. He conducts regional economic research and co-authors the Minneapolis Fed's "Beige Book"report on current economic conditions. He also writes articles on the regional economy and other economics and banking issues for the fedgazette and The Region , two economics and banking periodicals published by the Minneapolis Fed.
Grunewald regularly speaks to business, community and school groups about the Federal Reserve and the regional economy. He co-authored "Early Childhood Development: Economic Development with a High Public Return" (January 2003), an economic policy paper, which has been featured in the media, legislative hearings, and seminars in Minnesota and several other states.
Grunewald is also responsible for economic education projects, including the Economics Challenge, a national quiz-bowl competition for high school students. He sits on the Advisory Board for the Academy of Finance of St. Paul Public Schools.
If you haven't read his papers concerning early childhood development, I highly recommend that you do so... Here are some for you to look over:
- Early Childhood Development: Economic Development with a High Public Return, Rob Grunewald and Arthur J. Rolnick, fedgazette
- Lessons Learned: A Review of Early Childhood Development Studies, Jean Barr and Rob Grunewald, February 2006
- A Proposal for Achieving High Returns on Early Childhood Development, Rob Grunewald and Art Rolnick, May 2005
Here is article about Rob Grunewald in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal in South Carolina:
Analyst stresses importance of early education
AMANDA RIDLEY, Staff Writer
Published May 4, 2006
If a high school senior wants to attend college and can't afford it, there are numerous scholarships and financial aid options to help him or her get an education. But if a single mother of a 2-year-old wants her child to attend a quality child care center, there's little available to help her pay for it.The effects of that not only hurt mother and child, but it could impact economic development and your wallet as well, according to Rob Grunewald, an economist analyst from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
In his second stop in a four-city tour, Grunewald spoke Thursday evening to the Mary Black Foundation's annual Trustee Dinner about how investing in early childhood development can yield public and private returns.
"The costs of not investing in early childhood education are just too great to ignore," said Grunewald, who co-authored two papers detailing the benefits of putting dollars into quality child care programs and how every community can get involved.
Some of the benefits Grunewald mentioned include more students graduating from high school, less teen pregnancy and less crime.
Another is a 17 percent rate of return for every dollar invested in high-quality early childhood education."Although the results from investing in early childhood development will be less visible and likely less immediate than those of conventional economic development tools, there is no contest," he said.
"Unlike subsidies to companies, this an economic development tool that really works."One way to achieve success, he said, is to invest in at-risk children, who otherwise would not have access to quality early learning, through scholarships to low-income families to ensure that children are prepared before they enter kindergarten.
While that may not be immediately possible, Grunewald said, there are steps that could be taken to help pave the road.
For example, school readiness awareness campaigns to educate the business and broader communities about the importance of quality child care, and then providing incentives for improving what is already available.
The Mary Black Foundation is doing just that through a grant to First Steps of Spartanburg County to help 10 centers earn national accreditation.
Foundation President Philip Belcher said he hopes the community will see the benefits of broadening that scope to help more children.
"Early childhood development is not only the smart thing to do, it's the right thing to do," he said.
It's nice to see that Minnesota is helping make inroads for advancing early care and education in other states. Hopefully we can keep momentum going here...
