State rises in pack despite national economic woes.

Arkansas's state funded pre-K program is among the ten best in the nation according to a report released today by the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER).

The report, The State of Preschool 2009, ranks state programs based on a set of quality standards benchmarks and other factors that help determine how successful a state's program will be for its children. This year's findings show that Arkansas has increased its enrollment, met 9 out of 10 quality standards benchmarks and ranked 10th in per child funding. 

"The NIEER report clearly shows that Arkansas has one of the best pre-K programs in the country," said Rich Huddleston, executive director of Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. "This and other studies show that the investment we are making in quality pre-K is more than justified.  It's making a difference in the lives of our youngest children by improving their language, early literacy and math skills." 

Today in Arkansas, there are over 23,000 children participating in state funded pre-k programs, and once the economic climate improves, advocates hope to see that number increase.

"Arkansas has invested in pre-K, and this report shows that our investment is paying off," continued Huddleston. "But we cannot rest on our laurels. When the economy and state budget improves, we must make expanding access to quality pre-K a top priority in the allocation of any new dollars for education - or risk losing the gains we have made. In the meantime, we must the maximize the use of other education funding sources, including federal Title 1 dollars and poverty funds within the school funding formula, to expand access to quality pre-k." 

According to the report, many states have cut back on education spending because of budget shortfalls due to the economic recession. Of the 38 states with pre-K programs, per child spending declined in 24 of them.

"We are seeing a pause in the rapid increase in state preschool programs that we have seen in the last several years," said W. Steven Barnett, NIEER Director and report author.  "In some states enrollment has been cut back to the lowest levels in many years.  Other states have cut funding and quality."

Early education advocates in Arkansas have pledged to work with lawmakers to continue the state's progress in education in spite of the state's current budget woes.

"Arkansas has made great strides in improving its K-12 education system, but if we want to continue seeing those gains, we must remain committed to the ideal that quality pre-K is the first step to improving K-12," said Huddleston. "Our investment in education must be about more than meeting the legal definition of adequacy, but also about continuing our efforts to ensure that all children, regardless of their family's income, have the opportunity to participate in a quality pre-k program."

The full NIEER report can be viewed at www.nieer.org/yearbook/.