Universal preschool initiative ready for June 2006 ballot 

A group of preschool advocates led by film actor and director Rob Reiner have announced their intent to file a ballot initiative to make preschool available to all 4-year-olds, funded by a tax on the state’s richest residents.

Currently, only about 47 percent of eligible 4-year-olds attend preschool, according to the California Research Bureau. The initiative aims to supply enough funding to provide 70-80 percent of preschoolers with a high-quality program free of charge. By increasing the tax on Californians who make more than $400,000 ($800,000 per couple) by 1.7 percent, the initiative is projected to generate $2.3 billion per year for preschool programs.

The act, if successful, would provide a constitutional right to preschool for all 4-year-olds, beginning with those children born the day after the initiative is passed. The voluntary, half-day program would be driven by clear standards of teacher quality, mandatory staffing ratios, and a developmentally appropriate curriculum, and may be delivered by either public or private providers. It would require, beginning in 2014, that all preschool teachers have a bachelor’s degree. By 2016, they must all have earned an early learning credential, which has yet to be developed.

The “Preschool for All Act,” sponsored by Reiner and a coalition of business, labor and early education advocates, is intended for the June 2006 primary election. The initiative is expected to be submitted to the Attorney General’s office in the upcoming weeks to be cleared for circulation.

As written, the initiative vests significant authority in the state Superintendent of Public Instruction. County superintendents would ensure that individual programs meet standards, except in Los Angeles and San Francisco counties.

Assembly Member Wilma Chan, D-Oakland, is carrying legislation to support the goals of the Reiner initiative. Assembly Bill 172 could be used to “clean up” aspects of the initiative if it passes, or be used as a backup to reproduce the preschool initiative in the Legislature, Chan said.

The initiative and legislation come in light of a body of research in recent years that attest to the importance of the first five years of a child’s life to their eventual academic and social achievement. A recent study by the RAND Corporation concluded that for every dollar invested in high-quality preschool for all 4-year-olds, the state would see a return of two to four dollars or more. The study found that children that attend preschool are less likely to drop out, need special education, repeat a grade, and have higher test scores. Preschool was also found to reduce the likelihood of the children eventually becoming victims or perpetrators of crime, improve their health and wellbeing, and contribute to a better-prepared workforce, all factors that spell benefits for the state’s economy and social environment.

California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell has announced his own effort to expand preschool opportunities, and is supporting a legislative package that would provide free preschool to all California families and promote preschool teacher training, development of preschool learning standards, and administration of programs for preschool.

CSBA has not yet taken a position on this year’s preschool legislation or the ballot initiative, but the association will soon publish a Web-based policy and resource guide that provides background on the research to date about the effect of preschool on children’s academic achievement, economic effects, brain research and review the public policy considerations involved. The guide will also offer strategies for boards and school leaders who wish to expand access to high-quality preschool programs.