[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 119 (Thursday, September 21, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1808]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING ERIKSON INSTITUTE'S 40TH ANNIVERSARY

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                          HON. DANNY K. DAVIS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 21, 2006

  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the 
Erikson Institute of Chicago on its 40th anniversary. The Erikson 
Institute is an innovative institution dedicated to cultivating 
superior early childhood educators of minority and low-income children. 
The Erikson Institute was founded as a response to increased government 
programs for early childhood education. With the inception of the Head 
Start program in 1965, three esteemed child advocates--Maria Peirs, 
Lorraine Wallach, and Barbara Taylor Bowman--recognized the need for 
quality early child educators, especially those trained to teach 
minority and low-income children. Erikson Institute, with financial 
help from Irving B. Harris, opened its doors in 1966 and has upheld its 
commitment to excellence throughout the past four decades.
  Erikson's mission of ensuring that every adult who works with young 
children is knowledgeable, aware, and skilled is more important now 
than ever. Early childhood education is especially important to low-
income children. Therefore we know that prekindergarten programs have a 
positive impact on the cognitive performance of children living in 
poverty. A critical component in the process of educating young 
children is having well-trained teachers. In 2001, 72 percent of all 
urban public school elementary students in prekindergarten programs 
came from families classified as low-income by the Early Childhood 
Longitudinal Study. This study also found that roughly half, 51 
percent, were minority students. In Chicago there are 19,053 pre-school 
students, 2,659 of which are special needs children. The 7th District 
of Illinois, my congressional district, is home to 11,966 pre-school 
students. Clearly, there is a need for quality early childhood 
educators. The Erikson Institute fulfills an important role in training 
these instructors.
  Graduates of the Erikson Institute have learned every aspect of 
childhood development. Not only does the Erikson Institute provide a 
superior education, they also conduct important research on the needs 
of young children. Professors and researchers at Erikson are committed 
to sharing their knowledge with both the academic community and the 
general public. The Erikson Institute is dedicated to outcomes--
understanding what works and how--as well as the repetition of 
successful models. The Erikson Institute's formula for success has 
greatly benefited numerous programs in the Chicago area, including: 
Early Head Start; Chicago Public Schools; Illinois Department of 
Children and Family Services Early Childhood Unit; and Children's Place 
Project to name a few. Their impact is felt nationwide with over 2,500 
graduates a year working in various regions of the country.
  Mr. Speaker, as W.E.B. DuBois once said, ``We must insist upon this, 
to give our children the fairness of a start which will equip them with 
such an array of facts and such an attitude toward truth that they can 
have a real chance to judge what the world and what its greater minds 
have thought it might be.'' It is my great honor to commend the Erikson 
Institute on four decades of excellence in training those who educate 
our youngest children.

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