Prekindergarten Leadership Institute: Building Bright Futures
June 4-6, 2006
Denver, Colorado
The Child Care and Early Education Project conducted a successful two and half-day meeting, which brought together nearly 60 legislators from 24 states. National and state speakers presented and discussed a range of topics from financing and expanding preschool programs to key components of quality and accountability. Legislators also discussed among their peers next steps for prekindergarten policy in their individual states. Steffanie Clothier with NCSL's Child Care and Early Education Project and Sara Watson with The Pew Charitable Trusts opened the Institute, which lead in to introductions by participants. William Pound, executive director of NCSL, introduced the opening keynote presenter, Charles Kolb with the Committee on Economic Development (CED). Mr. Kolb shared information about how leaders in the U.S. business community and CED support public funding for prekindergarten as an important factor to improve the workforce and help the U.S. over the long term in the global economy. On the last day of the Institute, Colorado Speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff provided closing remarks.
A summary of the meeting and session highlights are provided below. Click on speaker names to access presentations.
Click here to get the biographies for all speakers
Monday, June 5, 2006
State Approaches to Prekindergarten
This session provided background on prekindergarten programs in the United States. Presenters highlighted state trends, policy choices for state legislatures, and key components of quality.
Speakers:
State Successes in Expanding Prekindergarten
This session highlighted examples of states that have expanded prekindergarten. The panel discussed legislation and implementation successes and challenges.
Speakers:
- Marsha Moore, Bright From the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, presentation
- Cathy Jones, West Virginia Department of Education
The Economics and Outcomes of Early Education
This session highlighted economic and child outcome research on investments in early education, including longitudinal studies and recent state studies. Sara Watson with The Pew Charitable Trusts introduced the session.
Speaker:
- Steve Barnett, National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER), presentation
Breakout Sessions (Participants were able to choose between two of the following sessions.)
Expanding Prek While Ensuring Quality
This session touched on the importance of high-quality settings for prekindergarten. As states plan prekindergarten programs and expansions, one of the issues is how to ensure quality among those providing prekindergarten. Participants learned from state speakers and their experiences in ensuring high quality prekindergarten.
Speakers:
- Bobbi Lussier, Tennessee Department of Education
- Representative LeRoy Dangeau, Arkansas, presentation
Governance in Prek
States that have implemented prekindergarten and states that are considering new prekindergarten programs have had to address the issue of agency authority and governance. This session explored the ways states have approached this issue and discuss successes and challenges.
Speakers:
- Tonya Russell, Arkansas Department of Human Services, presentation
- Senator Edward Augustus, Massachusetts
- Senator Gay Kernan, New Mexico
Tackling the Challenges of Prek: Advice from the Capitol
This session featured a panel of legislators who discussed the political, program and financing challenges legislators have faced in their states and how they met those challenges. The session was moderated by Senator Ed Olson from South Dakota.
Speakers:
- Senator Stephen Wise, Florida
- Senator Cynthia Nava, New Mexico
- Representative LeRoy Dangeau, Arkansas, presentation
Tuesday, June 6, 2006
Financing Prekindergarten
This session focused on different approaches to financing prekindergarten, including examination of revenue and funding distribution. The panel discussed state funding to community providers and to school districts through the school funding formula.
Speakers:
- Anne Mitchell, Early Childhood Policy Research, presentation
- Amy Anderson, Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, presentation
- Shawn Hime, Assistant State Superintendent, Oklahoma Department of Education, presentation
- Marsha Moore, Bright From the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, presentation
Designing Accountability Systems
This session focused on the ways states currently approach program evaluation and measuring child outcomes in prekindergarten programs and also highlighted the work of the National Early Childhood Accountability Task Force.
Handout from this session
Speakers:
- Tom Schultz, National Early Childhood Accountability Task Force
- Eugene Garcia, Arizona State University
For more information on child care issues, please contact Steffanie Clothier in the Denver office at 303.364.7700 or cyf-info@ncsl.org or either Sheri Steisel or Lee Posey in the D.C. office at 202.624.5400 or fedhumserv-info@ncsl.org.
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