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Brief
Making Sangamon County Competitive:
Investing in Early Learning to Help
Close the Skills Gap
In the next decade, the highest-skilled Illinois jobs are expected to grow at more than four times the
rate of the lowest-skilled jobs.1 In Sangamon County, over 80 percent of high-growth, high-wage jobs
of the future will require education after high school. We must certainly train and re-train our current
workforce. However, if we want a long-term solution to permanently reverse the anticipated skills
gaps, Illinois must expand investments in high-quality early learning.
The Skills Gap Today:
Sangamon County: Lacking 6,000 highly-‐
skilled workers
In Sangamon County, there is a deficit of high-skilled
workers to fill the current jobs. A labor supply and
demand analysis conducted by Chmura Economics
& Analytics finds that in Sangamon County there is a
deficit of 6,075 high-skilled workers.2
There Is a Deficit of 6,000 Highly-­Skilled
Workers in Sangamon County
43,170
6,000 workers have less
education than
employers want.
37,224
The Skills Gap Tomorrow:
10,000 of Sangamon County's High-‐Growth,
High-‐Wage Jobs Will Require College
Education
By 2022, most high-growth, high-wage jobs in
Sangamon County will require a two-year degree
or higher, 84 percent or 10,000 jobs in the county
(see chart, page 2).3 But today, six in 10 Sangamon
County residents don’t have the education level
necessary to compete for these jobs.4
Labor Demand
for High-­Skilled
Workers
Labor Supply of
High-­Skilled
Workers
Source: Chmura Economic and Analytics, 2012.
Quality Early Learning Is a Solution
Illinois and Sangamon County need an infrastructure that will better ensure a future workforce with
the skills our businesses will need. Extensive research confirms that high-quality early learning can lay
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2
In Illinois, 73 percent of high-­growth
and high-­wage jobs will require a
two year degree or higher.
100%
11%
4%
In Sangamon County,
84 percent will.
14%
Doctoral/Professional
4%
Master’s Degree
Bachelor’s Degree
24%
43%
Associate’s Degree
Postsecondary Award
(No Degree)
Some College
14%
1%
2%
22%
2%
Note: Due to rounding, may not add up to
precisely 100 percent.
High School Diploma
41%
14%
Less than High School
2%
1%
Source: Chmura Economic and Analytics, 2012. Based on 2012-­2022 growth
projections, BLS data.
the foundation children need for school success and to enter the workforce with the skills employers
require. Research studies demonstrate that children who participate in high-quality early learning can
do better on a range of outcomes:
x Better preparation to succeed in elementary school – for example, children who attended
Tennessee’s pre-kindergarten program had overall gains in literacy that were 50 percent greater
than for children who did not attend.5
x Less special education – children who attended the Chicago Child-Parent Centers program
were 40 percent less likely to need special education;6
x Lower rates of retention in school – children participating in the Abecedarian early
education program in North Carolina were 43 percent less likely to be held back in school;7
x Higher rates of high school graduation – children attending the High/Scope Perry Preschool
Program in Michigan were 44 percent more likely to graduate from high school;8
x Higher rates of college graduation – by age 30, Abecedarian project participants were four
times more likely to have earned a 4-year college degree than those not in the program.9
x Less crime – children not offered the Perry program were five times more likely to become
chronic offenders by age 27;10 and
x Higher rates of employment – children in the High/Scope Perry Preschool Program were 22
percent more likely to be employed at age 40.11
Studies of high-quality early education programs for at-risk children have shown that these programs
can save communities much more than they cost. For example, the Chicago Child-Parent Centers
3
program returned nearly $11 in benefits for every
dollar invested.12 These long-term benefits are
realized when the children who receive high-quality
early learning grow up and become better educated
and more productive workers, with far less remedial
education or criminal costs to society. Very few
other public investments can surpass that rate of
return.
High-­Quality Early Learning Promotes
College Success
Abecedarian Project participants were four times
more likely to have earned a college degree
23%
Conclusion
Illinois is falling behind when it comes to preparing
its future workforce to compete successfully in a
global economy. Quality early care and education
is the foundation upon which success in school and
later in the workforce is built. Policy-makers must
support high-quality preschool to support Illinois’
future.
Endnotes
6%
Attended
Abecedarian
DID NOT
Attend
Abecedarian
Source: Campbell et al., 2012
1 Chmura Economics and Analytics. (2012). Education and
occupational analysis for America’s Edge: Chicago MSA & select counties in Illinois. Custom data analysis. Richmond, VA and Cleveland,
OH: Author.
2 There is a deficit of skilled workers (defined as those with a Bachelor’s degree or higher) in the county to fill highly skilled jobs. This
means that an estimated 6,075 workers in Sangamon County have less education (such as an Associate’s degree) when the employer
would likely prefer (based on national occupational trends) to have an employee with a four-year degree. An example would be an
accounting firm which would prefer to hire someone with a four-year degree instead has hired a junior accountant with a two-year
degree. Based on U.S. Census Data and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, 2012 first quarter with preliminary estimates by Chmura
updated to 2012 third quarter. Chmura Economics and Analytic. (2012). Education and occupational analysis for America’s Edge:
Illinois & select regions. Custom data analysis. Richmond, VA and Cleveland, OH: Author.
3 Chmura Economics and Analytics. (2012). Education and occupational analysis for America’s Edge: Illinois & select regions. Custom
data analysis. Richmond, VA and Cleveland, OH: Author.
4 Analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2006-2010 data. Chmura Economics and Analytics. (2012). Education
and occupational analysis for America’s Edge: Illinois & select regions. Custom data analysis. Richmond, VA and Cleveland, OH:
Author.5 Chmura Economics & Analytics, 2012, based on ACS 2006-2010 data
5 Lipsey, M.W., Farran, D.C., Bilbrey, C., Hofer, K.G., & Dong, N. (April 2011). Initial results of the evaluation of the Tennessee
Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten Program. Nashville, TN: Peabody Research Institute, Vanderbilt University and Tennessee Department of
Education.
6 Reynolds, A. J., Temple, J. A., Robertson, D. L., & Mann, E. A. (2001). Long-term effects of an early childhood intervention on
educational achievement and juvenile arrest. Journal of the American Medical Association, 285(12), 2339-2380.
7 Barnett, W.S., & Masse, L.N. (2007). Comparative benefit-cost analysis of the Abecedarian program and its policy implications.
Economics of Education Review, 26, 113 – 125
8 Schweinhart, L.J., Montie, J., Xiang, Z.,Barnett, W.S., Belfield, C.R., & Nores, M. (2005). Lifetime effects: The High Scope/Perry
Preschool Study through age 40. Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Press.
9 Campbell, F.A., Pungello, E. P., Burchinal, M., Kainz, K., Pan, Y., Wasik, B., Barbarin, O. A., Sparling, J. J. & Ramey, C. T. (2012,
January 16). Adult outcomes as a function of an early childhood educational program: An Abecedarian Project follow-up.
Developmental Psychology. Advance online publication.
10 Schweinhart, L. J., Barnes, H. V., & Weikart, D. P. (1993). Significant benefits: The High/Scope Perry Pre-kindergarten study through age
27. Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Press
11 Schweinhart, L.J., Montie, J., Xiang, Z., Barnett, W.S., Belfield, C.R., & Nores, M. (2005). Lifetime effects: The High Scope/Perry
Preschool Study through age 40. Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Press.; Schweinhart, L. J., Barnes, H. V., & Weikart, D. P. (1993). Significant
benefits: The High/Scope Perry Pre-kindergarten study through age 27. Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Press
12 Reynolds, A.J., Temple, J.A, White, B.A., Ou, S.R., & Robertson, D.L. (2011). Age 26 cost-benefit analysis of the Child-Parent Center
Early Education Program. Child Development, 82,1, pp. 379-404.
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