Birth to Three Connections Big Success: Watch Where You Swing That Axe

Remember the Birth to Three Connections program the governor wanted to kill last winter... at least until a unanimous rebuke from the State Senate helped him see the stimulus light? Well, not that we needed any convincing, but Birth to Three just passed muster with the feds, meeting or exceeding all 14 standards used by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

So maybe the next time we need to swing the budget axe (like 2011, when the stimulus runs out?), could we maybe look at ditching programs that aren't performing first?

Of course, I'm willing to grant that, given how good South Dakotans are at doing good work on a thin dime, maybe Birth to Three's good performance is par for the course. Suggestions, anyone?