Report: The State of Preschool 2008: State Preschool Yearbook

WEST VIRGINIA – West Virginia Universal Pre-K 2007-2008
1 Effective July 2004, only 3-year-olds with documented disabilities are eligible to participate. Other 3-year-olds are funded through Head Start or the county.
2 This includes state pre-K and IDEA funds.
3 Head Start settings are outside the LEA building. If Head Start children are in public settings also, they are dually enrolled. Faith-based centers collaborating with LEAs are
required to be licensed as a private agency and included in the private agency count.
4 Programs must operate for at least 12 hours per week, with a maximum of 30 hours per week and at least 108 instructional days.
5 Three-year-olds with documented disabilities may enroll in pre-K.
6 Counties have the discretion to establish how children are accepted into the program until 2012, when the program will be available in all counties to all 4-year-olds and 3-
year-olds with disabilities.
7 Meals must be offered if the program operates for more than 4 hours per day.
8 If a classroom is in a community collaborative site, the teacher may acquire a permanent authorization for community programs, provided the teacher has at least an AA in
an approved field and has completed or is working toward an approved list of core early childhood courses.
9 Salary enhancement may be part of the collaborative process.
10 There is a 50 percent collaboration goal for West Virginia pre-K programs.
11 As of January 2007, an evaluation is underway to address the feasibility of the 2012-2013 deadline for universality, as well as a study of the process.
WISCONSIN – Four-Year-Old Kindergarten (4K) 2007-2008
1 Local school boards have administrative authority of school districts. School districts have administrative authority when 4K is delivered in community settings.
2 The 416 refers to elementary school districts and does not include high school-only school districts.
3 Funds are only available to school districts.
4 The state allows districts to have early entrance and retention policies that may allow 3- or 5-year-olds to be enrolled in 4K. However, the state does not collect data on how
many of these children are enrolled.
5 Districts are funded for all children enrolled in 4K and receive IDEA funds for children with IEPs.
6 The number of hours required varies. Districts must provide one of the following: a minimum of 437 hours of direct instruction per year, the minimum plus 87.5 hours of
parent outreach, or 349.5 hours of instruction plus 87.5 hours of parent outreach.
7 Districts may determine early entrance or retention practices. IEP teams may make placements based on individual needs.
8 Programs in public settings provide snack as determined by the district. If a program is extended, lunch is provided based on child care or Head Start policies.
9 State law supports vision, hearing, and health screenings prior to enrollment. When 4K uses the community approach with Head Start, screenings are required.
Requirements for immunizations are determined locally.
10 The license is obtained as a result of a university program that leads to a degree.
11 Assistant teachers are required to have a license from the Department of Public Instruction. Title I standards may also apply (AA). In nonpublic settings, child care or Head
Start requirements may apply. Child care requirements represent the minimum standard.
12 The Wisconsin Quality Teacher Initiative also allows teachers to use professional development plans with mentors and review teams to replace credit hours.
13 In-service requirements are locally determined or based on the program model.
14 Stipends are available for new graduates to work on professional development plans.
15 This is an estimate.
16 4K funding is 0.5 of the funding for other grade levels. Districts may receive 0.6 if they provide 87.5 hours of parent outreach.
17 Approximately 20 of the districts offering 4K used Head Start and/or child care settings.
18 Local property taxes are part of the funding formula.
19 Local districts contract with child care and Head Start.
20 The school funding formula includes transportation.
21 Wisconsin 4K was part of the SWEEP study.
WISCONSIN – Head Start State Supplement 2007-2008
1 Funding is provided to federal Head Start grantees that existed when the state supplement was first implemented.
2 This is the number of funded slots. The number reported in past years (1,391) was incorrect due to a programming error. This figure is accurate; it does not represent an
increase in the number of children. The state does not collect information on the ages of children enrolled.
3 School districts receive IDEA funding for all children with IEPs. If children are enrolled in Head Start, the district may provide special education and related services in the
Head Start setting. Head Start programs fund separate services for children with IFSP/IEPs enrolled in federal Head Start.
4 Head Start may partner with 4K and/or child care, but data are not available regarding the numbers of children served in those settings.
5 Local programs determine hours based on their approved federal Head Start grant. Programs may partner with child care or 4K to extend hours, days and/or weeks.
6 The grant cycle begins July 1. Local programs determine operating schedules based on their approved federal Head Start grant.
7 Programs may partner with child care or 4K to extend hours, days and/or weeks.
8 Local Head Start programs may have age exceptions for Head Start enrollment.
9 The state promotes the enrollment of age-eligible children in kindergarten rather than in Head Start, but there are no rules to regulate this.
10 State Head Start follows federal Head Start enrollment requirements.
11 Federal Head Start income guidelines apply, requiring that 90 percent of the children be at or below 100 percent FPL.
12 Eligibility is based on federal Head Start income guidelines and local Head Start enrollment criteria.
13 The federal Head Start Performance Standards require that part-day programs provide children with at least one-third of their daily nutritional needs, and full-day programs
provide one-half to two-thirds of daily nutritional needs, depending on the length of the program day.
14 School districts that are federal Head Start grantees may require lead teachers to have a BA and appropriate licensure. The federal Head Start program requires a CDA.
15 The requirement for assistant teachers in nonpublic settings reflects child care licensing regulations. School districts that are federal Head Start grantees may require
assistant teachers to have an AA and assistant teacher license.
16 In December 2007, the Head Start reauthorization changed the requirement to 15 clock hours of professional development per year.
17 Stipends are for new graduates with teaching licenses.
18 The funding is a grant for a specified number of slots.
19 The Head Start state supplement amount is not the same as the federal Head Start allocation, but all funded children are in Head Start settings.
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