DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE - Knoxville Chamber of Commerce

Tennessee’s Voluntary Pre-K Program curriculum is age appropriate and the classes
are small—at about two adults per 15 students.
designed for those earning too much money to
qualify for Head Start, Tennessee’s education
initiative aimed specifically at low-income families.
Bredesen seeks to make the program available to
all 4-year-olds in the state, regardless of income or
at-risk factors, by 2011. “This is called universal pre-K
and is available in very few states at this time,” says
Carol Idol, a pre-K specialist.
“In Knox County, we currently have 13
classrooms in 10 locations,” Idol says. “Each
classroom enrolls 15-17 students. Ten of the classes
are funded by the state Department of Education and
three are funded locally through the Great Schools
Partnership and the United Way. Currently, the
Department of Education requires us to prioritize
enrollment of those children who would qualify to
receive free or reduced-price meals.”
T h e V o l u n ta r y P r e - K P r o g r a m i s
pa r t i c u l a r ly d e s i g n e d f o r t h o s e e a r n i n g
t o o m u c h m o n e y t o q ua l i f y f o r H e a d
S ta r t, T e n n e s s e e ’ s e d u c at i o n i n i t i at i v e
a i m e d s p e c i fi c a l ly at l o w - i n c o m e
fa m i l i e s .
The program has been extremely popular
because of the quality of its services. The teachers
are all certified in Early Childhood Education and
have bachelor’s degrees; six have advanced degrees,
including one doctorate. All teaching assistants