PRE4CLE made significant strides in the past two years to increase the availability of high-quality preschool in Cleveland neighborhoods and the number of children enrolled in those preschool seats, according to PRE4CLE’s 2016 Annual Report.

As of December 2016, 4,277 children are enrolled in high-quality preschool, —a 50% increase in preschool enrollment since 2013. Significantly, 22 out of 33 neighborhoods have increased their high-quality preschool supply, including 16 neighborhoods that now have enough high-quality preschool seats to serve at least 50% of the neighborhood population, up from 11 when PRE4CLE started. Children enrolled in PRE4CLE classrooms also made strides toward kindergarten readiness.

Other highlights from the Annual Report include:

-During the past two years, PRE4CLE and its partner preschool programs, called PRE4CLE Providers, have created 2,358 high-quality preschool seats for children in Cleveland by improving the quality of 1,361 seats and creating 997 new seats in the most high-need neighborhoods in Cleveland.

-36% of all preschool-aged Cleveland children are enrolled in high-quality preschool.

-745 new full-day preschool seats are available to Cleveland’s families, increasing early learning opportunities while also supporting parents in the workforce.

-46.2% of children in PRE4CLE settings demonstrated meaningful improvement in school readiness in the year before kindergarten.

-93% of high-quality providers in Cleveland are part of PRE4CLE.

-An estimated half of the new $22.8 million public-private expansion of Cuyahoga County’s Universal Pre-K (UPK) program is expected to go to Cleveland, providing greater support for preschool quality and scholarships for families.

-PRE4CLE has engaged more than 6,000 families through an Enrollment Campaign, providing information and resources to connect families to high-quality preschool.

The preschool expansion plan was launched in 2014 and has garnered $8.9 million in public and private support from Cleveland Metropolitican School District, Cuyahoga County, PNC Bank, The George Gund Foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, The Abington Foundation, Bruening Foundation, Thomas H. White Foundation, and The Char and Chuck Fowler Family Foundation.

Marcia Egbert, Senior Program Officer at The George Gund Foundation and co-chair of the Cleveland Early Childhood Compact that governs PRE4CLE, said the two-year results are positive. “Two things become clear with these data: Cleveland families want high-quality preschool experiences for their children, and exposure to high-quality preschool helps children enter school ready to succeed,” Egbert said. “While these results are very encouraging, the work is far from done.  We need to ensure a high-quality preschool experience is available for all young children in our community.”

Katie Kelly, Executive Director of PRE4CLE, attributed PRE4CLE’s success to the community support that has come together to make school readiness and high-quality preschool a priority in Cleveland. “When we started two years ago, it was because the business, non-profit, school, philanthropic, government, and religious communities identified the importance of investing in our youngest learners in Cleveland,” Kelly said. “Today, more of our children have a preschool experience that has a research-based curriculum, highly-qualified teachers, and ample time for learning and playing. This solid foundation in their first years creates the basis of all success to come.”