Transcript Slide 1
NEW MEXICO PRE – K
INITIATIVE
COLLABORATION WITH
HEAD START
NEW MEXICO PRE-K
FY 06
• New Program – nonrecurring funding of $5 million
for a 2-year pilot program
• Approximately 1,538 four year old children were
served
• 20% of allocated funds to teacher development
and higher education
• Focus on communities with schools in need of
improvement (AYP and Title I)
PRE-K FY 06 (Continued)
• Early Learning Plan Drafted for Pre-K which
includes Program Standards and Learning
Outcomes for 4-year olds
• 30 programs funded during phase 1; 19 funded by
CYFD and 11 school district programs funded by
PED (Head Start Sites: 4 –CYFD and 3-PED)
• Collaborative between Children Youth and Families
Department and Public Education Department
NEW MEXICO PRE-K
FY 07
• Pre-K Expansion – nonrecurring funding increase of
$3 million; inclusive of $1.5 M to create a fund for
Pre-K start-up and safety costs (Total - $8M)
• Approximately 572 additional children will be served
(Total 2110 children)
HEAD START
COLLABORATION
• Early Childhood Interagency Action Team (ECIAT)
• New Mexico’s Early Learning Plan Development
- Pre-K Program Standards
- Learning Outcomes for 4 to 5 year olds
• New Mexico’s Educational Readiness Framework
• Pre-K Assessment Task Force Policy Brief
EARLY CHILDHOOD
ALLIANCE
“A car needs all its parts to run……
So does an early childhood system.”
COLLABORATION
ISSUES
• Increase capacity of new children; supplementing
existing programs not encouraged.
• No real collaboration between local community
based programs and public schools.
• Low Cost per Child Reimbursements
• Full Day versus Half Day Programming
COLLABORATION
ISSUES (Continued)
• RFP process too technical for smaller tribal
grantees and child care centers.
• Competition of 4 year old slots in small tribal
communities. (Potential for future competition
throughout NM communities)
• Worthy wages and benefits for preschool
teachers.
COLLABORATION
ISSUES (Continued)
• Recognizing and validating the existing high
quality programs in New Mexico that have been
providing Early Childhood Education for years.
• Teacher degree short timeframe and limited
capacity of colleges.
• Supporting native language learning and culture.
(Spanish and Tribal)
COLLABORATION
ISSUES (Continued)
• Expanding the role and function of the Head Start
Collaboration Office.
• More active involvement of the Migrant/Seasonal
Program and Indian Head Start Grantees.
• Coordinated approach to funding communities from
the state level.
A CHINESE FOLKTALE
Retold by Yishan Lea
“Forcing to Grow”