On a daily basis, we hear the news about our nation's deepening recession, rising unemployment, budget deficits, and the list goes on. We are hopeful that the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act will make a big difference in improving our economy. But as a nation we should not only be concerned with solving our most immediate problems, we must also aggressively plan for the future by making long-term investments. Investing in early childhood education will not only make a difference in our economy it will also add to our social well-being in the long term.

Hawai'i has a long history of recognizing the value of quality education for our keiki. In traditional Hawaiian education the 'ohana was central to the education and well-being of all young children in the community. The love of learning, a strengths-based focus and high levels of expertise were all fostered in Hawai'i's first system of education. In 1831, at the urging of the early missionaries to the Hawaiian monarchy, Lahainaluna High School was established. It is the oldest public school west of the Rocky Mountains, and two of its more notable graduates were among the first graduating classes: David Malo (1835), a Native Hawaiian scholar and Hawai'i's first superintendent of schools; and Samuel Kamakau (1837), who is recognized as one of Hawai'i's greatest historians.

In the 1890s, Hawai'i was among the first countries in the world to create an innovative and progressive kindergarten education system for a multi-cultural, multi-racial population. Private funders, primarily women, worked collectively to privately fund kindergartens that were modeled on the progressive teaching of American philosophers John Dewey and George H. Mead of the University of Chicago.

Years later in 1943 — in the midst of the world and economic challenges posed by World War II — the Hawai'i Territorial Department of Education boldly responded to community pressure to adopt kindergartens and to provide a more comprehensive tax supported K-12 system. Over the decades, Hawai'i's early education experiment has helped generations of our citizens achieve admirable social and economic mobility.

Today, Hawai'i once again stands at the crossroads for educating our keiki. There are many competing requests for public dollars; state and national leaders must make difficult choices. But we need to look at the bold, innovative decisions made by those who came before us to move our state's early childhood education system to the next level.

Over the years a number of leading economists and business leaders have studied the impact of investing in quality early childhood education and concluded that "investing in children is investing in our nation's economic success." Studies such as the Perry Preschool Project concluded that the return on investment was $16 for every public $1 spent on this high- quality program. Hawai'i's private trusts and foundations also wholeheartedly "see the light," contributing more than $35.7 million in 2007 and nearly $38 million in 2008.

This generosity is due also in large part to Kamehameha Schools, which has made early learning and parent engagement a priority of its educational strategic plan, and provided the largest share of these private contributions — 89 percent in 2007 and 96 percent in 2008. A growing number of individual donors are also supporting early education. Much of this support comes from young families' contribution gifts of their labor, talent, time and donated materials.

We must do more. As a state we have the opportunity to follow in our ancestors' footsteps by investing public monies to make bold and innovative decisions that will in turn create a solid educational foundation for all Hawai'i keiki. The investments we make now will ensure that our children will become successful and contributing citizens in our global community. Hawai'i's quest for educational equity is a moral and economic imperative for a society in which education is a key determinant of life chances.

Kanoe Naone is CEO of INPEACE (Institute for Native Pacific Education and Culture). Alfred L. Castle is executive director, treasurer and trustee of the Samuel N. and Mary Castle Foundation. They wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.