New Hampshire used to always have an edge. Heck, we even have a name for it.

Whether it was with lower taxes, attractive business incentives or any other quality Granite Staters were proud to tout, the "New Hampshire advantage" has slowly declined in a Greater Boston marketplace that has become more competitive over the last decade. But now, there is a different way we can maintain an advantage: giving our students a strong start.

Education advocates, including Nashua Mayor Jim Donchess, testified Jan. 12 before the New Hampshire House Education Committee in favor of full-day kindergarten for all toddlers in the state, championing the measure that notes many skills attained in a child’s early years are crucial to development through adolescence.

Democrats in the Statehouse have jumped aboard, and Republican Gov. Chris Sununu expressed interest on the campaign trail in funding such a measure. An October poll found 70 percent of voters here also support full-day kindergarten in the budget, according to the Save the Children Action Network.

The benefits are numerous – an age-appropriate social and intellectual environment for a developing preschooler’s mind can result in continuing academic gains while slashing crime rates. Full-day kindergarten also helps close the achievement gap currently experienced by too many minority and low-income families, according to the National Education Association.

A solid foundation of learning, the association asserts, can ensure academic, social and emotional success during a "bridge year" that allows children to move from "unstructured play and early learning to the more structured learning environment of formal schooling."

A March 2014 report from the Education Commission of the States notes New Hampshire requires half-day kindergarten, with a minimum requirement of 180 days or 450 hours per year.

"It was not until 2009 that New Hampshire caught up to the rest of the nation by offering public kindergarten in every school district," Mary Stuart Gile, a ranking Democrat on the education committee and former kindergarten teacher, said during a hearing last week.

"However, we remain one of the few states that do not provide funding for full-day kindergarten programs. Our failure to reimburse cities and towns for full-day kindergarten acts as a deterrent to communities that wish to enact these critical programs."

Money, of course, will likely be the justification against full-day kindergarten. It will cost more than a few nickels and dimes, but this measure should be viewed more as a part of a long-term investment in our state.

Strategic plans always put workforce development as a top priority. Businesses looking to hire cannot find or retain qualified applicants here.

Why not change that for 2030 by giving our youngest students a head start over those in Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont with an upgraded education system, starting with kindergarten, so New Hampshire’s best are poised to contribute at their job and in their communities.

This is not an overnight solution. It is, however, a viable and common-sense solution.

It may take a generation to see the benefits of better early childhood education, but improvements to tuition for New Hampshire students will create more engaged, productive and skillful residents as they seek 21st-century jobs. Starting now will give us that edge.