Early Ed Roundup: Week of April 21 – April 25

Following the First 5 Dollars in California

California’s First 5 program funds many preschool and early childhood programs in the state, but savvy parents have used grants from the zero-to-five program for everything from child ice-skating lessons, marriage workshops, and a Santa Claus costume. The “Parent Action Grants,” which are worth up to $11,000 over three years and disbursed at the wide discretion of 58 county commissions, are intended to foster parent leadership and child advocacy. But some wonder if the money would be better spent on expanding early childhood programs for low-income children, rather than funding projects that are often designed by upper and middle class parents. First 5 had a budget of $564 million in 2007, funded by revenue from a voter-approved cigarette tax.

Build It, But Will They Come?

In 2006, voters in Denver approved a sale tax increase that would fund pre-k in the city. Now the $11.8 million-strong Denver Preschool Program is planning a $1 million advertising campaign to raise enrollment for the coming academic year. It’s becoming increasingly clear that new pre-k initiatives need to include high-quality parent outreach, especially to low-income parents and non-English speaking families, to ensure that parents whose children most benefit from high-quality pre-k know about and take advantage of the programs. Through TV and newspaper ads and grassroots outreach, the program hopes to increase current pre-k enrollment more than five fold to 3,800 by August.

Budget Shortfall Thwarts Pre-K Expansion in Massachusetts

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick’s hopes to add 892 pre-k classrooms in the state will have to wait at least another year because of a projected budget shortfall. The state’s FY 2009 budget, as presented last week in the House, includes a $3 million expansion for pre-k, much less than the $15 million Patrick originally requested. Begun in 2006, the Massachusetts pre-k program currently serves about 10 percent of the state’s 3- and 4-year-olds.

Designing a Quality After-School Program

After-school programs are getting more attention and funding under No Child Left Behind, but the quality of these programs varies greatly, according to a new report by Robert Granger published by the Society for Research in Child Development. On average after-school programs that have undergone evaluation have produced positive academic, social, and emotional benefits, but too many programs have yielded a null result. Common problems included young, untrained teachers with high turnover rates. Granger says the best performing programs are those that have clear, project-based objectives, are student-focused, and allow the students to progress at their own pace.