A powerful video produced by MSNBC on families - many of them bringing in two incomes - needing government assistance through SNAP and the challenges they face in keeping their families fed. Many find themselves grocery shopping at midnight, even 4 a.m., when the money is deposited into their SNAP accounts.

The US Department of Education has announced the proposed Office of Early Learning to oversee Early Learning Challenge Grants and to coordinate early learning programs within the department. Jacqueline Jones, the senior advisor for early learning to Education Secretary Arne Duncan, will lead the office, which will be housed in the Education Department's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Our slide in the world's rankings as it impacts creating an educated workforce is discussed in this piece out of California. The United States ranks 15 out of 27 in OECD countries and second out of 27 countries in the percentage of students who enter college, but leave without earning a degree.

Fourteen communities, including Hartford, Bridgeport, Wethersfield, New Britain, Vernon, Danbury and others, are working with the national Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, want to attack underlying issues that prevent children from learning to read well. 

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof says the single step that would reduce inequality would be to expand early childhood education. The columnist says the question isn’t whether we can afford early childhood education, but whether we can afford not to provide it. We can pay for prisons or we can pay, less, for early childhood education to help build a fairer and more equitable nation. 

Two days before the state's application is due for Race to the Top, Governor Malloy signed Executive Order 11, establishing an Office of Early Childhood within OPM.

Race to the Top may continue as part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), according to a draft reauthorization proposal that is circulating in Washington.

The New York Times explores the possible ways to ensure students obtain their college degrees. Do we spend at the higher education level or at the early levels? 

The Associated Press reports that Connecticut is making significant progress toward the completion of the state's application for $50 million in Race to the Top funding.

Members of the 112th Congress have introduced a number of bills related to early education that, if passed, could have a big influence on states’ early learning systems.