October 15, 2025 • 7 mins
In this episode of Sound of the State, Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford discusses the impact of head start programs, how early childhood education has changed over the years, and more.
Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford strongly believes education starts at birth. Listen to this episode of the Sound of the State podcast to learn why early childhood education is the foundation of our entire educational system.
Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford strongly believes education starts at birth. Listen to this episode of the Sound of the State podcast to learn why early childhood education is the foundation of our entire educational system.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to this episode of the Sound of the State
podcast from the Illinois Senate Dening Credit Caucus. I'm Colby Hoff,
joined today by Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford. Leader, Welcome
back to the podcast. A conversation today about a subject
very dear to your heart, education, specifically early childhood education.
October is head Start Awareness month that brings attention to
just one element of early childhood education that you've addressed
(00:21):
during your time as a legislator. Leader. When we talk
about education, Leader Lightford, we tend to default to just
thinking about kindergarten through high school. But as I've alluded to,
you're a strong advocate for the idea that education starts
at birth. Can you talk about why that's a significant
belief for you.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I believe that because children from disadvantage and underprivileged backgrounds
often into kindergarten already behind their peers, because they're lacking
access to the rich early learning experiences that middle and
upper income families can provide. So by the time we
intervene in elementary school, we're trying to close caps that
(01:00):
have already widened significantly, and it's far more effective and
economically efficient to prevent these gaps from forming in the
first place. So when I advocate for education starting at birth,
I'm not simply talking about infants doing math equations. I'm
talking about nurturing environments that developed the whole child, their curiosity,
(01:23):
their ability to form relationships, their emotional resilience, and their
sense of self worth. These social emotional foundations are every
bid as important as academic skills for future success, and
I believe that every child deserves the opportunity to reach
their full potential, regardless of the zip code they're born
(01:46):
into or the economic circumstances of their families.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
Growing the early childhood sector has been at the forefront
of your legislative priorities throughout your over two decades in office,
Leader Lightford, how have you seen the way early childhood
ed has changed since you first took office?
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Well, you know, I'm happy to tell you that when
I first took office in nineteen ninety eight, early childhood
education was largely viewed as babysitting or a convenience for
working parents. But today we do understand it as the
foundation of our entire educational system. So this transformation both
(02:24):
in public perception and from a policy level has been
one of the most significant changes I've witnessed in my
legislative career. Twenty five years ago, early childhood programs were
primarily seen through a welfare leans and it was something
we provided to help low income families get by, but
(02:44):
the conversation centered on basic supervision and care. Now we
recognize early childhood as one of our most strategic investments
in economic development and in human capital.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
So we've moved.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
From asking the questions of how do we help parents
work to how do we ensure every child has the
strongest possible foundation for lifelong learning. And perhaps the most
dramatic change has been in quality standards. So when I started,
there were minimal requirements for early childhood educators and little
(03:21):
consistency in program quality, and we've worked to establish rigorous
standards that require ongoing professional development and recognize that early
childhood educators are exactly that, educators, not babysitters. We've pushed
for better compensation, degree requirements, and career pathways that reflect
(03:44):
the critical nature of this work.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
Leader. Early intervention at head Start programs are said to
make a growing impact on children's school careers and life.
Since your strong advocacy to enhance those programs. How have
you seen the impact of such programs here in Illinois?
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Since my tenure here, I've had the privilege of witnessing
firsthand how early intervention and head Star programs fundamentally change
children's trajectories. Illinois early intervention programs serves children from birth
to age three with developmental delays or disabilities, and what
(04:21):
I've observed is that when we identify and addressed challenges
in those critical first years, we often prevent what could
have become lifelong struggles. I've met families where early speech
therapy transformed a child who wasn't communicating into a confident kindergartener.
And I've seen children with developmental delays who received early
(04:45):
intervention services go on to succeed in general education classrooms
without needing extensive special education support later. So the ripple
effects extend to entire families. Parents who were overwhelmed and
frightened about their child's development become empowered advocates. Siblings benefit
(05:06):
when the family system is more stable and supported, and
the economic impact is significant too. Early intervention often reduces
the need for costly special education services throughout a child's
school career. I remain convinced that early intervention and headstart
represents some of our most powerful tools for creating opportunity
(05:30):
and breaking cycles of disadvantage.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
What measures have you personally been a part of at
the state level to help see that change? I know,
Leader Likedford. One of the recent successes in your work
has been legislation creating the Department of Early Childhood. What
are some of these specific things tasked to that agency?
Speaker 2 (05:45):
You know, the most recent and most exciting was CENY
Bill one in twenty twenty four, which created the new
Department of Early Childhood. So Preschool for All initiatives is
another exciting bill that I'd done some years ago, and
I have been a strong advocate for the Preschool for
All initiative that funded early Childhood Black grants that will
(06:07):
be housed under the new Department of Early Childhood. And
then in twenty twenty one, we had our Educational Equity Package,
and as a part of the Black Caucauses for a
Pillar Agenda, I led a monumental education package. The law
addresses education and workforce development from early childhood to adulthood
(06:28):
and to help insure school readiness. It strengthens early intervention
services and says a kindergarten readiness assessment and stature. Early
intervention services, which help support the development of children with
delays and disabilities, will now be available until the beginning
of the school year after the child urns three and then.
(06:50):
I also established the Whole Child's Task Force, which was
building the Statfast commitment to ensure schools are taking a
trauma responsive approach. I championed a law to bring more
training and resources to the education system. The Whole Child
Task for US established an equitable, safe, inclusive, and supportive
(07:11):
environment in all schools for students dealing with trauma and
mental health issues.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Sent up a jority leader, Kimberly Lightford of Maywood, representing
the fourth Senate to district, thank you for joining me
on the podcast today
Welcome to this episode of the Sound of the State
podcast from the Illinois Senate Dening Credit Caucus. I'm Colby Hoff,
joined today by Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford. Leader, Welcome
back to the podcast. A conversation today about a subject
very dear to your heart, education, specifically early childhood education.
October is head Start Awareness month that brings attention to
just one element of early childhood education that you've addressed
(00:21):
during your time as a legislator. Leader. When we talk
about education, Leader Lightford, we tend to default to just
thinking about kindergarten through high school. But as I've alluded to,
you're a strong advocate for the idea that education starts
at birth. Can you talk about why that's a significant
belief for you.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I believe that because children from disadvantage and underprivileged backgrounds
often into kindergarten already behind their peers, because they're lacking
access to the rich early learning experiences that middle and
upper income families can provide. So by the time we
intervene in elementary school, we're trying to close caps that
(01:00):
have already widened significantly, and it's far more effective and
economically efficient to prevent these gaps from forming in the
first place. So when I advocate for education starting at birth,
I'm not simply talking about infants doing math equations. I'm
talking about nurturing environments that developed the whole child, their curiosity,
(01:23):
their ability to form relationships, their emotional resilience, and their
sense of self worth. These social emotional foundations are every
bid as important as academic skills for future success, and
I believe that every child deserves the opportunity to reach
their full potential, regardless of the zip code they're born
(01:46):
into or the economic circumstances of their families.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
Growing the early childhood sector has been at the forefront
of your legislative priorities throughout your over two decades in office,
Leader Lightford, how have you seen the way early childhood
ed has changed since you first took office?
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Well, you know, I'm happy to tell you that when
I first took office in nineteen ninety eight, early childhood
education was largely viewed as babysitting or a convenience for
working parents. But today we do understand it as the
foundation of our entire educational system. So this transformation both
(02:24):
in public perception and from a policy level has been
one of the most significant changes I've witnessed in my
legislative career. Twenty five years ago, early childhood programs were
primarily seen through a welfare leans and it was something
we provided to help low income families get by, but
(02:44):
the conversation centered on basic supervision and care. Now we
recognize early childhood as one of our most strategic investments
in economic development and in human capital.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
So we've moved.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
From asking the questions of how do we help parents
work to how do we ensure every child has the
strongest possible foundation for lifelong learning. And perhaps the most
dramatic change has been in quality standards. So when I started,
there were minimal requirements for early childhood educators and little
(03:21):
consistency in program quality, and we've worked to establish rigorous
standards that require ongoing professional development and recognize that early
childhood educators are exactly that, educators, not babysitters. We've pushed
for better compensation, degree requirements, and career pathways that reflect
(03:44):
the critical nature of this work.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
Leader. Early intervention at head Start programs are said to
make a growing impact on children's school careers and life.
Since your strong advocacy to enhance those programs. How have
you seen the impact of such programs here in Illinois?
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Since my tenure here, I've had the privilege of witnessing
firsthand how early intervention and head Star programs fundamentally change
children's trajectories. Illinois early intervention programs serves children from birth
to age three with developmental delays or disabilities, and what
(04:21):
I've observed is that when we identify and addressed challenges
in those critical first years, we often prevent what could
have become lifelong struggles. I've met families where early speech
therapy transformed a child who wasn't communicating into a confident kindergartener.
And I've seen children with developmental delays who received early
(04:45):
intervention services go on to succeed in general education classrooms
without needing extensive special education support later. So the ripple
effects extend to entire families. Parents who were overwhelmed and
frightened about their child's development become empowered advocates. Siblings benefit
(05:06):
when the family system is more stable and supported, and
the economic impact is significant too. Early intervention often reduces
the need for costly special education services throughout a child's
school career. I remain convinced that early intervention and headstart
represents some of our most powerful tools for creating opportunity
(05:30):
and breaking cycles of disadvantage.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
What measures have you personally been a part of at
the state level to help see that change? I know,
Leader Likedford. One of the recent successes in your work
has been legislation creating the Department of Early Childhood. What
are some of these specific things tasked to that agency?
Speaker 2 (05:45):
You know, the most recent and most exciting was CENY
Bill one in twenty twenty four, which created the new
Department of Early Childhood. So Preschool for All initiatives is
another exciting bill that I'd done some years ago, and
I have been a strong advocate for the Preschool for
All initiative that funded early Childhood Black grants that will
(06:07):
be housed under the new Department of Early Childhood. And
then in twenty twenty one, we had our Educational Equity Package,
and as a part of the Black Caucauses for a
Pillar Agenda, I led a monumental education package. The law
addresses education and workforce development from early childhood to adulthood
(06:28):
and to help insure school readiness. It strengthens early intervention
services and says a kindergarten readiness assessment and stature. Early
intervention services, which help support the development of children with
delays and disabilities, will now be available until the beginning
of the school year after the child urns three and then.
(06:50):
I also established the Whole Child's Task Force, which was
building the Statfast commitment to ensure schools are taking a
trauma responsive approach. I championed a law to bring more
training and resources to the education system. The Whole Child
Task for US established an equitable, safe, inclusive, and supportive
(07:11):
environment in all schools for students dealing with trauma and
mental health issues.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Sent up a jority leader, Kimberly Lightford of Maywood, representing
the fourth Senate to district, thank you for joining me
on the podcast today
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