In June, Rhode Island lawmakers approved a statewide school funding formula. The formula will prioritize school districts with increasing enrollments and with high number of low-income students while including – for the first time – funding for state pre-k. “Having a formula,” State Education Commissioner Deborah Gist told the Providence Journal, “gives us equity, transparency and consistency in the ways our funds are distributed and the resources we give to our schools.” The formula is intended to redistribute about $705 million a year in direct aid to school districts, charter and state-operated schools — without significant additional funding. An estimated 71 percent of the state’s 145,000 public school students will benefit as their school systems receive more state aid. In May, Pre-K Now released “Formula for Success”, a report discussing the benefits and challenges of integrating early education into states' general education funding structures.

Massachusetts officials want higher standards for their prekindergarten teachers. The Boston Globe reports that the education administration wants more teachers to earn bachelor’s degrees as part of their strategy to reduce the achievement gap among students. “We have children who enter kindergarten with one-third of the vocabulary of their peers,’’ said Paul Reville, the state’s education secretary. “That puts them at a huge disadvantage.’’ According to the Globe, boosting credentials for pre-k teachers is key to the state’s effort to offer high-quality pre-k to all 3, 4 and 5 year olds. Less than a third of pre-k teachers in private schools, where most of the state’s pre-k students enroll, hold bachelor’s degrees, according to a report released by the Boston-based Strategies for Children, Inc. In March, Pre-K Now released “A Matter of Degrees,” a report showing the benefits of bachelor’s degrees and training in early childhood education for pre-k teachers.

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