Pre-K 101

According to the national advocacy organization Pre-K Now, total state pre-K investments--a funding stream separate from federal childcare funds--rose from $2.9 billion in FY05 to $4.2 billion in FY07, an increase of more than $1 billion in just two years. In sum, state officials committed to funding increased access to pre-K face a choice between competing philosophies: 1) adapt the model of the U.S. higher education system, which includes private, public, and religious colleges and universities, and government funding, which a student may use at any accredited institution or 2) expand the supply by funding the K--12 system to include pre-K.