It’s election season, and constituents across the country are weighing in on how each presidential candidate is addressing pressing policy issues. The cost of child care is a pressing issue. Vice President Kamala Harris has taken the time to highlight her initiatives for child care, which include a tax cut of $6,000 so that “young families can afford to buy a crib, buy a car seat, and buy clothes for their children.” She also says that she’d cap child care costs at 7% of working families’ income. 

While these are compelling proposals, I believe she should also actively call for Universal Pre-Kindergarden (UPK). Currently, only 17% of three-year-olds and 41% of four-year-olds in the United States attend a public preschool. UPK programs will help raise these numbers and will also tackle child care as an economic issue. Allowing free education for such young children will academically benefit kids and let parents go back to work. 

A universal Pre-K initiative would lead to a significant increase in preschool enrollment. This is evident in the top state enrollments for four-year-olds. States that have implemented UPK programs have exceedingly high preschool enrollments. Oklahoma, Florida, and Vermont all have enrollment rates over 70%, compared to the national average of 59%. Preschool enrollments result in increased student performance in the future. High school graduation rates are six percentage points higher for those who attended preschool, and college attendance rates are eight percentage points higher for kids who attended preschool.

Some states have already recognized the power of UPK. California Governor Gavin Newsom is rolling out a UPK for all four-year-olds by 2025, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker aims to achieve universal preschool by 2027, and Michigan’s Governor Gretchen Whitmer has dedicated over $250 million to expand free pre-K. Colorado is launching its own program this fall, following Governor Jared Polis’ campaign pledge for full-day preschool. Newsom, Pritzker, Whitmer, and Polis are all influential people in the Democratic party. Harris should build on this momentum, and promote UPK policies on the national level.

The U.S. lags far behind other developed nations in terms of funding and support for early childhood education. The U.S. spends just 0.3% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on childcare, compared to an average of 0.7% in other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. This disparity underscores the need for a federal response. 

Universal preschool would not only dramatically increase access to early education, it would also allow parents to find affordable childcare. Expanded access to preschool would allow parents to return to the workforce, boosting economic productivity and reducing family stress. When Washington, D.C. expanded full-day preschool, maternal workforce participation saw a significant increase. Furthermore, For every dollar invested in early childhood education, the return to the public is between $4 and $9 due to higher lifetime earnings, better health outcomes, and reduced reliance on social services. In a time when the cost of childcare is soaring, averaging $8,600 per year for preschool, investing in UPK would ease financial burdens on families and spur economic growth. This policy would be a great help for working families in a nation where childcare is more expensive than rent in all 50 states. 

UPK also represents a major step toward educational equity. Families from low-income backgrounds face challenges in accessing affordable childcare options. Existing federal programs, like Head Start, a federally funded early education program, serve only about one-third of eligible children, leaving many families without access to crucial early learning opportunities. By making preschool universal, we can ensure that every child has the opportunity to succeed, regardless of socioeconomic background. Harris, who has said education is a fundamental right, should seize this moment to push for UPK once again. 

Of course, implementing UPK won’t be without challenges. For example, there is currently a shortage of teachers nationwide. However, these challenges are not insurmountable. Policymakers must work to reduce barriers to teacher certification while ensuring high standards of education. For starters, offering free community college education for preschool teaching certification would help with access to teachers. And while there is a cost in implementing UPK programs, it is an investment that will continue to result in higher literacy, numeracy, and language fluency skills.

It is time for candidates and lawmakers to make UPK a national priority. It was an idea that the Biden-Harris administration pushed for in its early days, and one that many Democratic governors have pledged to for their states. Kamala Harris herself committed to universal preschool in her initial presidency run in 2020. Now, Kamala Harris should recommit and make UPK a cornerstone of her child care policy agenda.

Note: This piece was written before the 2024 US presidential election.