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"Preschool for All is a top
priority of ours because we know how much quality teaching and
learning at an early age helps kids succeed in the future,"
Blagojevich said. "We're doing the right thing for the future of our
children and the future of Illinois by making quality preschool
available to all of our children."
Illinois' high-quality, state-funded pre-kindergarten program
earned a second place nationally for the percentage of 3-year-olds
enrolled and 13th place for percentage of 4-year-olds, according to
The State of Preschool 2006: State Preschool Yearbook. Illinois's
pre-kindergarten initiatives also meet nine of 10 quality benchmarks
cited by the report. The State Preschool Yearbook ranks all 50
states on access to, resources for and quality of state preschool
initiatives for the 2005-2006 school year.
"Unlike the national picture, Illinois' funding per child
increased," said W. Steven Barnett, director of the National
Institute for Early Education Research. "Low- and moderate-income
working parents need to know from year to year whether they can
count on their state to provide quality preschool for their
children."
"We know that we improve lifelong learning when we can get kids
into preschool; they're more likely to complete high school and less
likely to be placed in special education," said Jesse H. Ruiz,
chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education. "Governor
Blagojevich's Preschool for All gets more of our students started
off on the right foot -- something that will pay dividends for the
rest of their lives."
Building upon the success, the Illinois State Board of Education
is moving forward with Blagojevich's Preschool for All expansion by
accepting proposals from potential providers for the 2007-2008
school year. Public and private entities with experience in
providing educational, health, social and child development services
to young children are encouraged to submit proposals.
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 Under the state budget recently introduced by Blagojevich, an
additional $60 million would be available for Preschool for All, on
top of the $45 million included in the current budget. The
additional funding during fiscal 2008 will allow for another 12,000
children to have access to high-quality preschool. The goal is to
continue to increase funding until all children whose families want
them in preschool have access to it by fiscal 2011.
"We know that students who go to preschool make better progress
in math, language and social skills as they continue their
education," said Christopher Koch, interim state superintendent of
schools. "Preschool for All is opening up the doors for those
students whose families want to give their children this opportunity
but may not be able to afford it."
Preschool for All will allow every community to offer
high-quality preschool in a variety of settings, including public
and private schools, child-care centers, licensed family child-care
homes, private preschools, park districts, faith-based organizations
and other community-based agencies. It requires that preschools be
staffed by experienced teachers who hold bachelor's degrees and
specialized training in early education. The preschools must provide
at least two and a half hours per day of high-quality programming
designed to foster all of the skills -- social, emotional, physical
and cognitive -- that all young children need to have.
The Illinois State Board of Education has posted a
request
for proposals. The information is available in both English and
Spanish. Proposals must be delivered to the Illinois State Board of
Education no later than May 3.
Blagojevich has made early childhood education a top priority for
his administration, fulfilling his promise to increase investments
in the Early Childhood Block Grant program by $135 million over the
past four years. His commitment to expanding early childhood
education has gained national attention, including being cited by
Pre-K Now as a "Pre-K budget hero" for continuing his push for
preschool expansion despite difficult budget conditions.
The full State Preschool Yearbook is available at
www.nieer.org.
[Text from file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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