When Pottstown’s two state representatives return to Harrisburg for budget talks in the coming weeks, they will do so with a deeper understanding of the benefits of last year’s $30 million increase in state funding for Pre-K Counts.

A bill in the General Assembly could help thousands of Pennsylvania grandparents who are raising their children’s children.

Fueled in part by the opioid epidemic, some 82,000 grandparents care for more than 89,000 grandchildren in the Keystone State. Foster parents receive support services from county Children and Youth Agencies, but those providing what’s known as “kinship care” – outside the formal, foster-care system – have similar needs and often can’t access those services.

In a study comparing 30 states, Pennsylvania is ranked 18th in investing in high-quality, publicly funded Pre-K.

“What we worry about in a block grant is that kids will be pitted against very needy adult populations, such as seniors, such as the disabled, such as their own parents.”