A pre-K project ‘that involves the entire community’

Issues that 'really need the attention of the state'

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On Wednesday, I facilitated a discussion on a Forsyth County task force’s plans to expand pre-K to all its 4-year-olds. I wrote about this task force, focused on early childhood education, last year, as well as the local community collaborative, the Pre-K Priority, that’s been advocating for more pre-K access since 2014.

After a $3.7 million county investment earlier this fall, the task force’s new report outlines a vision for strengthening the county’s pre-K system: higher standards and pay for teachers, family engagement and translation services for parents, and systems for data collection and oversight.

Many localities across the state — all with different approaches — have taken pre-K expansion into their own hands as statewide progress has stagnated. Even with state funds for more slots, the amount of money programs receive doesn’t cover the full cost. The access rate has remained at around 50% of eligible 4-year-olds in pre-pandemic years, or about 25% of all 4-year-olds. In Forsyth County, just 26% of eligible children attended NC Pre-K in 2019-20.

The report’s recommendations include establishing salary parity for pre-K teachers with public school teachers, strengthening the pipeline with outreach and pathways for high schoolers, and implementing consistent curricula, screenings, and transition supports in all pre-K classrooms.

“We have a unique pilot that involves the entire community,” said Louis Finney, CEO of Smart Start of Forsyth County.

State’s key role

Even with cross-community buy-in, a task force dedicated to early childhood, and an investment from county commissioners, the group still says advocacy at the state level is a top priority.

“There’s still some state-level areas, particularly around the NC Pre-K program, that we’re considering that really need the attention of the state to support our specific community,” Finney said on a webinar on the report Wednesday that I facilitated.

Local communities receive uneven amounts of funded slots and allocations for child care subsidy, Finney said.

Advice for others

Of course communities’ capacities and resources to fill in those gaps vary. After hearing the panelists talk about the components of the Forsyth plan, I was both excited for that community and thinking about the children and families in other communities that don’t have a Pre-K Priority.

So I asked what advice they have for others. Here were their answers:

• Talk to parents.
  • Ask parents what they need and want for their families, said Traci Ross, CEO of Family Services. This might sound obvious, but isn’t always how systems are built.
• Ensure quality before expanding.
  • Several members of the task force talked about supporting and retaining educators. Tricia McManus, superintendent of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, said having the same curricula and pay standards across public and private settings is a key part of ensuring all children have high-quality experiences.
• Get county commissioners on board.
  • Forsyth County Commissioner Don Martin, who also chairs the task force, said county commissioners not only have opportunities to spend American Rescue Plan funds, but to advocate at the state level for needed changes.
• It’s not all about academics (from a superintendent).
  • McManus made a point that stood out to me about a need to focus on social and emotional competencies before kindergarten: “We have years to make sure kids are learning how to read, but it’s those prerequisite skills that are so important,” she said.

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