{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.kaine.senate.gov/press-releases/kaine-applauds-175-million-grant-to-expand-pre-k-programs-in-virginia", "Kaine Applauds $17.5 Million Grant To Expand Pre-K Programs In Virginia", "2014-12-10", "2014", "2014-12", "Democrat", "House", "VA", "Tim Kaine", "K000384", "www.kaine.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Kaine Applauds $17.5 Million Grant To Expand Pre-K Programs In Virginia\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tWednesday, December 10, 2014\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tWASHINGTON, D.C.\u2014 U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement applauding today\u2019s announcement by the U.S. Department of Education that Virginia will receive a $17,500,000 Preschool Development Grant to provide high-quality preschool programs for children from low and moderate income families through the Virginia Preschool Initiative, which Kaine helped expand as Governor. Kaine wrote to the Department of Education in October urging the department to award the grant to Virginia.\r\n\"The critical funds awarded by the U.S. Department of Education will help children in high-need communities throughout the Commonwealth get a head start on a lifetime of learning,\u201d said Kaine. \u201cInvesting in early childhood education helps close the achievement gap between children of all backgrounds. That\u2019s why as Governor I worked with members of both parties to improve the quality of Pre-K programs and increase enrollment by 40 percent. Virginia\u2019s early childhood education programs are a model for the nation and I am a proud supporter of their expansion.\u201d\r\nIt is estimated that through the grant, Virginia will increase the number of children served in state-funded preschool programs by 17 percent. The U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services require that grant recipients promote federal priorities such as engaging families as partners, serving children at or below 200% of poverty in high-need communities and ensuring there are highly qualified teachers in preschool classrooms.\r\nKaine has long championed early childhood education, having\u00a0worked with legislators, educators and business leaders as Governor to expand the Virginia Preschool Initiative. As Senator, Kaine introduced\u00a0the\u00a0Strong Start for America\u2019s Children\u00a0Act,\u00a0legislation to expand access to high-quality early learning programs for children from birth to age five.\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.kaine.senate.gov/press-releases/kaine-applauds-175-million-grant-to-expand-pre-k-programs-in-virginia"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9701570961624384, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}