Thats a penguin. He likes the cold. He likes the ice, my almost three-year-old daughter proclaims definitively as she turns the page. Its a Wednesday evening at bedtime. The house has reached a familiar quiet hum, indicating the close of another hectic day.

Tomorrow morning our family will busily franticly prepare for another workday. Like millions of families across this country, we will pack our lunches and snacks, negotiate proper dress usually involving at least one tutu and a pair of rubber boots and head out the door. Although we make sacrifices to do so, we are fortunate to be able to send our daughter to Pre-K.

On Wednesday just before midnight, the Santa Fe City Council voted 8-1 to convene a special election this May. The single question on the ballot will be whether the citizens of Santa Fe, New Mexico will enact a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in order to ensure that every 3- and 4-year-old in the city has an opportunity to access high-quality early childhood education services. Mayor Javier Gonzales, who introduced the ordinance in January, has referred to the measure as the citys go big moment.

Santa Fe is considered a tourist destination by most. With approximately 70,000 residents, locals still affectionately refer to it as a town. The citys population is progressive, with 71% of the county voting for Secretary Clinton this past November. In 2014, the city passed a living wage bill, which currently sets the minimum wage at $11.09 per hour. In a nod to the environment, the city banned plastic bags last year. Santa Fe boasts innovative restaurants, world-renowned art galleries and museums, a lively film industry, and the George R.R. Martin-backed and wildly successful immersive art exhibit, Meow Wolf .

But, beyond the historic downtown plaza, New Mexico has the highest rate of childhood poverty in the nation. 29% of Santa Fe students fail to graduate from high school , and the state is ranked 49th nationally in overall child well-being according to the 2016 KIDS COUNT report published by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. 77% of New Mexicos fourth graders are not reading at grade level, and 90% of New Mexican eighth graders are not proficient in math .