John Lechleiter: Early childhood education is path out of poverty

Aug. 12, 2016, was one of the most meaningful and memorable dates for me as a community leader, philanthropist and advocate.

On that day at the Day Early Learning Lilly Family Center, I stood next to several other public- and private-sector leaders and called for a significant increase in state investment in high-quality early-childhood education for low-income families.

I felt—and still feel—compelled to make the case for greater access to pre-kindergarten for families living in poverty. Too many children are missing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity because their families can’t afford the full cost of a high-quality preschool program.

The day felt even better as my wife and I toured the center and talked with the teachers and staff and the children themselves.

One little boy asked if I would join him to work on a puzzle. As I was fitting pieces together with him, I wondered, “What happens when this little boy goes home? What kinds of challenges might his parents or caregivers be facing? Do they have stable jobs? Are they struggling to keep their house or pay rent? Today is Friday … Is preschool lunch his last healthy meal until Monday?” These are the questions that still keep me up at night.

Even with so much progress in our community, central Indiana’s social issues are significant and sometimes feel impossibly stubborn. It’s baffling to me that poverty has risen 80 percent in the last decade, even while our public and private sectors and our philanthropic community have put enormous effort into finding solutions for the long term.

At a recent live-stream event, United Way of Central Indiana, Indy Chamber, Mayor Joe Hogsett and three former mayors—Greg Ballard, Bart Peterson and Steve Goldsmith—met to discuss their concerns with Indianapolis’ staggering inclusive-growth and poverty statistics. Right now, more than 230,000 families are living in or are one crisis away from falling deep into poverty. Without changes, children born and living in poverty are unlikely to ever rise out as adults.

It’s up to all of us to help stop the cycle.

United Way is our best chance to do that. For 100 years, it has been putting the generosity of thousands of donors to work in human services. While progress has been made, we must do better. That’s why I’m a fervent supporter of United Way’s new strategic framework and its Two Generational Approach to poverty.

This new strategy, unveiled last month, represents the culmination of several years of effort on the part of the local United Way to understand better how we can be even more effective in addressing the problems and challenges our communities face. It seeks to harness the collective power of donors, volunteers and advocates to achieve measurable, long-lasting impact in the areas of education, financial stability, health and basic needs.

Today, that little boy I met at Day Learning is about 6 years old. I hope he’s a happy, confident and healthy first-grader. I hope he goes home from school to a loving, stable household. I hope he’s not worried about an empty pantry or refrigerator. I hope his parents aren’t worried about being evicted from their home or losing their jobs because they can’t find transportation to get to work.

Only by working together will these “hopes” become reality. United Way—with its new approach—provides a unique opportunity to harness the collective power of our community to do just that, for the benefit of all our citizens.•

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Lechleiter is former chairman and CEO of Eli Lilly and Co.