--- title: SR 456. Week of the Young Child; recognize April 5-11 collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr456 cite_as: SR 456, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr456 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr456.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr456/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71610 date: 2025-03-27 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr455.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr457.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 94 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr456.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 456 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-03-27 last_action: Senate Read and Adopted sponsors: - Ed Harbison text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR456/2025 upstream_id: 2014659 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - early childhood education - childcare - Georgia Senate resolutions - education workforce --- # SR 456. Week of the Young Child; recognize April 5-11 ## Text 25 LC 129 0416 Senate Resolution 456 By: Senator Harbison of the 15th A RESOLUTION Recognizing April 5-11 as the Week of the Young Child; and for other purposes.1 WHEREAS, the first years of a child's life are the period of the most rapid brain development2 and lay the foundation for all future learning; and 3 WHEREAS, children's cognitive, physical, social-emotional, and language and literacy4 development are built on a foundation of children's positive interactions with adults, peers,5 and their environment; and 6 WHEREAS, high-quality early childhood programs provide important benefits to children,7 families, and our state and national economies; and8 WHEREAS, high-quality early care and education can help ameliorate the effects of poverty,9 detect and remediate delays, identify and help prevent child ne glect, and lead to positive10 outcomes for individual children, helping them be better prepared for school and more likely11 to succeed in life; and12 S. R. 456 - 1 - 25 LC 129 0416 WHEREAS, high-quality early childhood education depends on high-quality early childhood13 educators who ensure that children, supported by families, have the early experiences they14 need for a strong foundation; and15 WHEREAS, tuition from fee-paying parents and subsidy rates for families with low incomes16 are typically insufficient to afford highly-qualified, consistent early childhood educators and17 pay for the low child-to-educator ratios that ensure the health and safety of children; and18 WHEREAS, young children need early childhood educators who are incentivized and19 supported to provide high-quality care to those with high and special needs; and20 WHEREAS, working families need sufficient high-quality childcar e spaces beginning at21 birth to be available in the community; and22 WHEREAS, early childhood educators need the ability to earn a family-sustaining wage that23 is commensurate with the required education and skills they bri ng to the complex and24 valuable work they do; and25 WHEREAS, it is urged by members of our community to support eff orts that increase26 children's and families access to high-quality early childhood education and commit to27 investments that stabilize, sustain, and support childcare and early learning so this essential28 workforce can continue to support children, families, and our economy through the pandemic29 crisis, recovery, and beyond.30 NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body31 hereby recognize the complex, valuable, essential, and demandin g work of the early32 childhood educators and recognize, April 5-11 as The Week of the Young Child.33 S. R. 456 - 2 - 25 LC 129 0416 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed34 to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to The Week of the35 Young Children community members and other parities.36 S. R. 456 - 3 - ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia Senate resolution designates April 5-11 as the Week of the Young Child, honoring early childhood educators and highlighting the importance of early childhood education. ### Plain-language summary This is a ceremonial resolution passed by the Georgia Senate rather than a law that changes anyone's rights or duties. It recognizes April 5-11 as the Week of the Young Child, pointing to research on early brain development and the value of high-quality early childhood education and care. The resolution's preamble describes challenges facing the early childhood education field, including low pay for educators and insufficient funding from tuition and subsidies. The Senate resolves to recognize the work of early childhood educators during this week and directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to Week of the Young Child community members and other interested parties. ### What it does - Formally designates April 5-11 as the Week of the Young Child in Georgia through a Senate resolution. - Recognizes the work of early childhood educators as complex, valuable, and demanding, without creating new funding or legal requirements. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute copies of the resolution to Week of the Young Child community members and other parties. - Sets out the Senate's views on the importance of early childhood development and the challenges facing childcare funding, without enacting any binding policy changes. ### Who it affects Early childhood educators, childcare providers, families with young children, and the Secretary of the Senate, who is tasked with distributing copies of the resolution to community members and other interested parties. ### Why it matters Because this is a resolution rather than a bill amending Georgia law, it does not change funding, regulations, or requirements for childcare providers or families. Its practical effect is symbolic recognition of early childhood educators and the issues they face, which could be cited in future policy debates. ### Key provisions - The preamble (whereas clauses) lays out reasoning about brain development, the value of high-quality early care, and funding challenges facing early childhood educators. - The resolving clause formally recognizes April 5-11 as the Week of the Young Child and honors the work of early childhood educators. - A further resolution directs the Secretary of the Senate to make copies available for distribution to Week of the Young Child community members and other parties. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-03-27) - Last action: Senate Read and Adopted (2025-03-27) - Sponsors: Ed Harbison - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71610 > The history, votes, and amendments (94 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr456.md?full=1