Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire’s 2009-2011 state budget proposal calls for some painful cuts across Washington, and it’s a mixed bag for the Valley’s family services organization, Encompass.

Funding for its Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) has been spared — for now — but requested increases to adequately fund early intervention for infants and toddlers with developmental disabilities are missing from the plan. Encompass staff will keep a close eye on how the Legislature changes the budget in coming weeks before it is finalized.

Early childhood education

ECEAP provides free pre-school to 36 students whose families earn no more than 110 percent of the federal poverty level. The annual household income cut-off is about $23,300 for a family of four, but extenuating circumstances like job losses and deaths in the family are also taken into account for acceptance.

The program provides an early educational start for at-risk children, making them less likely to require costly state services over the years, said Paula Nelson, a family support specialist.

“It’s pay now, or pay later,” Nelson said. “If we start them early on this, the state saves so much money in the long run.”

ECEAP also gives families a link to other Encompass services, like parenting classes, career advisement, and even finding resources to help with utilities bills.

“We work with the whole family. It’s a holistic approach. And when the kids get to kindergarten, they’re ready to go,” Nelson said.

About one-third of Encompass’ pre-school students are there thanks to ECEAP, and the classrooms are multi-cultural. Teachers often hear Spanish, Chinese and Russian, Nelson said.

For many children, the preschool is their first exposure to English. Even for English-speakers, the classes provide a bridge for children whose parents aren’t able to help them learn at an early age.

“We work with lots of single moms who are not getting child support. They’re working and have several kids, and don’t have time to work with their children at night,” Nelson said.

There is a smaller, similar program in Carnation, Nelson said, but the Encompass program is the only one in the lower Valley. She added that at $260 a month, Encompass is the least expensive pre-school in the Valley, but the ECEAP families “could never pay that.”

Federal law mandates that children from birth to age 3 with “significant delays” have access to early intervention services, said Nela Cumming, Encompass’ director of program development.

Encompass provides screenings for any child in the Valley who is suspected of having developmental disabilities, and provides intervention where needed. With less severe cases, such as speech issues, specialists are often able to help children catch up to the developmental level expected for their age, eliminating the need for more special needs services later in their education, Cumming said.

“It’s a great prevention tool,” she said.

As specialists have developed their understanding of developmental disorders, the number of children diagnosed with them has increased, including in the Valley. Demand for services has shot up, but government aid isn’t keeping pace.

IGovernment funding for Encompass’ program ran out this past October, forcing the organization to find alternatives, such as community fundraisers, to maintain the federally mandated program for almost 100 children in November and December, Cumming said.

Cumming was relieved that funding to the program wasn’t cut in Gregoire’s 2009-11 proposal, but is also concerned that it hasn’t gone up.

Early intervention programs across the state had hoped for a $7.4 million increase in the budget to help them cope with the growing number of services they provide. Instead, their funding is stagnant.

One idea being floated is to eliminate services for children with less severe disabilities.

Cumming called the possibility “a disaster” that could lead children with relatively minor disabilities to develop bigger issues and ultimately cost the state more money.

“It would be pennywise and pound-foolish,” Cumming said. “Imagine a kid with a speech problem that could have been fixed by speech therapy, which really works. Instead, he’ll have communication problems. A kid who can’t talk is going to have learning and maybe discipline problems.”

Cumming is worried about how state cuts will affect local families.

“More families are struggling. There’s a dramatic increase in basic needs,” she said, pointing to a 20 percent rise in the number requests for help through Encompass’ Respectful Giving campaign. One woman “performed a miracle” by trekking through snow to pick up a box of food for her family.

Cumming is optimistic that Encompass will continue its mission.

“Gregoire is an advocate for children and families, and that’s who Encompass helps,” she said. “It could have been so much worse.”