Proposed state legislation to consolidate preschool programs would certainly come in handy for San Mateo County, according to a local education official.

The county Office of Education serves about 1,350 children, mostly from low-income families, in its Preschool for All project and three kinds of state programs.

"It becomes a bureaucratic snarl," said Jeanie McLoughlin, director for Preschool for All. "It's very, very complicated with multiple funding streams."

On Tuesday in Sacramento, state leaders highlighted a new legislative package — Assembly Bill 2759 and Senate Bill 1629 — designed to streamline and expand quality preschool across California to help narrow the academic disparity among different ethnic groups of students.

"Improving access to quality preschool is a major step we must take to close the achievement gap in California schools," state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell said in a news release. "Too many of our students — particularly students who are poor, African-American or Latino — are not meeting their full potential. We must address this inequity and expand quality early-learning opportunities.

"Preschool can make a huge difference in students' academic success and benefit students well beyond their school career."

AB2759, authored by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, would consolidate all of the existing state preschool, prekindergarten, family literacy,

Advertisement
general child care and development programs. It would then create the California State Preschool Program, the largest state-funded effort of its kind in the nation.

"These two bills will help increase the availability of preschool programs and reduce administrative costs and burdens so that funding gets to where it's most needed — to provide more quality preschool for our kids," Jones said.

AB2759 would benefit the county's overall preschool efforts, McLoughlin said.

"Anything the state can do to streamline (the delivery of preschool) without losing accountability will ultimately allow a more effective and efficient use of the limited funds available," she said.

SB1629, introduced by state Sen. Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, would establish a commission to develop a framework for improving the quality of preschool programs. This system would feature a rating scale of programs to help parents make informed decisions for their children. It would also include a graduated funding model to help preschool programs reach higher levels of quality.

"I think this bill is definitely a step in the right direction," McLoughlin said.

The county's Preschool for All program already has a similar model that increases funds to classrooms based on higher teacher qualifications, she said.

Preschool for All offers free early-education services to families regardless of income within targeted areas of the Redwood City and Ravenswood school districts.

"Preschool for All seeks to raise the bar," McLoughlin added. "We have certain expectations that exceed the state's."

For instance, the county's program requires teachers to have a bachelor's degree and 32 units of early-childhood education courses, she said. In comparison, the state Department of Education asks for 16 units of general education and 24 units of early-childhood education.

Staff writer Neil Gonzales covers education. Reach him at 650-348-4338 or ngonzales@bayareanewsgroup.com.