Salt Lake is first Pre-Plus site
By Jennifer Hiller
Advertiser Education Writer
The state today will break ground on the first of 13 preschools to be built on public elementary school campuses — a public-private partnership that many hope will be the first step toward universal access to preschool in Hawai'i.
Salt Lake Elementary will be the state's first campus to house the Pre-Plus program, which will accept 3- and 4-year-old children from low-income families to help prepare them for kindergarten.
The Salt Lake preschool should be open by Aug. 1; other Pre-Plus sites should break ground starting in April and also could be open in time for the new school year.
Liz Chun, executive director of the Good Beginnings Alliance, said the preschool program will help families and children make the transition into kindergarten.
"When we first began with Pre-Plus we saw it as one piece that increases school readiness in our state," Chun said. "We wanted to increase the number of quality early learning programs and to make them easier for families to access. This isn't the whole piece, but it's an important piece."
Pre-Plus is a public-private partnership; while the state provides the buildings rent-free, licensed and accredited private providers will operate the preschools. Legislators approved the $5 million program last year. It is run out of Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono's office.
Although families of all income levels can apply to the Pre-Plus schools, preference will be given to children whose families are at or below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Index, which is classified as a family of four with an income under $36,000.
Chun said poverty is the biggest risk factor for young children performing poorly in school.
Salt Lake Elementary Principal Duwayne Abe said his campus asked to be a Pre-Plus site out of concern for the community. Because about 40 percent of his students qualify for the federal free and reduced lunch program, Abe said it's obvious that there are kids in the area who now do not attend preschool because of the cost.
"All of our kindergarten teachers feel like they're having less and less students with preschool experience," Abe said. "That exposure makes such a difference."
Studies show that early-childhood education has a bearing on future academic success. In addition to better language and math skills, children who have had a quality preschool experience are less likely to drop out of school, repeat grades or require special education.
A national report released earlier this year said that despite some state efforts to improve access to preschool for disadvantaged children, there are great disparities in early childhood education in Hawai'i.
More than 70 percent of children in high-income areas arrive in kindergarten with some preschool experience, but only about 30 percent of kindergartners in low-income areas have attended preschool, according to Education Week's "Quality Counts" survey.
Pre-Plus is a partnership between the state, the Good Beginnings Alliance, Kamehameha Schools, Head Start and other programs. Kamehameha preschools, the state's second-largest provider of preschool services after Head Start, plans to expand to reach 11,000 children within five years.
Reach Jennifer Hiller at jhiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8084.
