Get in Touch
Get Involved
Logo with overlapping blue and green geometric shapes on the left and the text "PRE4CLE" with the number 4 in green on the right.
  • About Us
  • Our Work
  • For Families
  • For Preschools
  • Resources
Search
Close
Logo with interlocking blue, green, and yellow shapes on the left and the text “PRE4CLE” with the number 4 in green on the right.
  • For Families
  • For Preschools
  • Provider Hub
  • Resources
  • Get in Touch
  • FAQs

When our smallest students shine, Cleveland thrives

Find a high-quality preschool!
Menu

Cleveland Kindergarten Readiness Snapshot

Three overlapping trapezoids in orange, blue, and light green arranged side by side on a white background.

PRE4CLE is committed to evaluating our community’s progress toward Cleveland’s preschool goals using both child-level and system-level indicators. The annual Cleveland Kindergarten Readiness Snapshot is an online tool that includes these indicators along with important context about the preschool landscape.

Learn about our metrics
View child-level indicators
View system-level indicators

What is Kindergarten Readiness?

When PRE4CLE began in 2014, only 16% of children entering kindergarten in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District were prepared for school. PRE4CLE is working to increase the number of children who are enrolled in high-quality preschool, leading to increased school readiness, as measured by Ohio’s Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA).

Our local results support what study after study has found: When kids attend high-quality preschool, they're better prepared for kindergarten.

Children who are kindergarten ready demonstrate:

Three toy blocks labeled 1, 2, and 3 are stacked unevenly, with small sparkling stars and dots around them.

Early literacy and math skills

Illustration of a globe on a stand, showing simplified continents and oceans.

Enthusiasm for learning

A child’s drawing of three stick figures standing on grass under the sun, with blue and orange crayons placed in front.

Positive interactions with teachers and peers

Illustration of a conference or classroom setup with a front desk, a blue chair behind it, and rows of green audience chairs in front.

The ability to succeed in a classroom environment

An adult and a young child sit on the floor together, looking at an open children's book the adult is holding.

A Community Commitment

Cleveland’s Kindergarten Readiness Assessment results demonstrate that kids who are enrolled in high-quality preschool are better prepared for kindergarten. That’s why our community is so focused on increasing the number of high-quality preschool seats and ensuring that all available high-quality preschool seats are enrolled.

Preschool providers, including those in CMSD, private preschools, Head Start centers, child care centers, and family child care homes have joined our commitment to high-quality and dedicated their time and resources to earn high-quality ratings. PRE4CLE’s partners at Starting Point work closely with preschool providers throughout Cleveland to help them improve their quality.

View PRE4CLE Preschools

What is high-quality preschool?

When we talk about high-quality preschool, we mean preschools that have earned a gold or silver rating in Ohio’s Step Up To Quality rating system. When PRE4CLE began in 2014, only 24% of Cleveland’s kids were enrolled in a high-quality preschool setting.

Step Up To Quality is a three-tiered rating system implemented by the State of Ohio. It helps parents understand the level of quality in preschool programs. It’s designed to help parents compare different programs by using the same set of standards and helps preschool providers improve and communicate their quality to parents.

learn more

High-quality programs offer:

Illustration of a school building with a blue roof, a flag on top, and an arched doorway flanked by two windows.

environments

that are fun, welcoming, safe, and caring

Three stacked books with an apple on top next to a cup holding pencils and a ruler.

staff & teachers

who are well-trained and professional

An easel holds a chalkboard displaying the equation "1 + 5" written in white.

research-based curriculum

with lesson plans for each day’s activities

Illustration of two crayons, one orange and one green, and a blue marker drawing a squiggly line, with decorative star shapes in the background.

educational activities

to prepare your child for kindergarten

A paintbrush overlaps three drawings: a cloud, a rainbow, and a partially colored image on blue paper.

creative & imaginative play

to inspire a lifelong love of learning

Illustration of a brain divided into green and blue halves, with a ring orbiting it and four yellow lightning bolts around the brain.

feedback

about your child’s learning and progress

A young girl with beaded braids smiles and flashes a peace sign while sitting in a classroom.

Kindergarten Readiness in Cleveland

Kids who enter kindergarten ready to succeed are more likely to meet third grade reading benchmarks, graduate high school, pursue a college degree or career training program, have a successful career, and earn more in their lifetime. The graphs below show that as more Cleveland kids attended high-quality preschool, more children were ready for school when they entered kindergarten.

Our community’s gold standard for preschool: Cuyahoga County’s Universal Pre-Kindergarten Program

Many children who attend kindergarten in CMSD attended a preschool program that was part of Cuyahoga County’s Universal Pre-Kindergarten program (UPK). All UPK programs are high-quality and receive resources that make them the gold standard for preschool in our community. Children who attend UPK programs consistently show high levels of kindergarten readiness. In the 2021 sample of Cleveland kindergarteners who attended a UPK program for preschool, 61% scored in the approaching and demonstrating bands of the KRA, and 38% were on track in language and literacy.

Cleveland’s kindergarteners who attended high-quality preschool demonstrate higher levels of kindergarten readiness.

Cleveland’s kindergarteners who attended high-quality preschool are more likely to be on track in language and literacy.

Logo of Case Western Reserve University, Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Center on Poverty and Community Development.

KRA Analyses are created by our partners at the Center on Poverty and Community Development using their CHILD Data System.
NOTE: This analysis focuses on children who attended preschool sites in the City of Cleveland and attended CMSD for kindergarten. These children were given the KRA upon their entry to kindergarten in the fall. Children who attended at least one full school year at a PRE4CLE Provider Preschool are defined as those who attended at least one day for eight or more months. KRA data provided by CMSD. Preschool rating data provided by Starting Point.

State of Preschool in Cleveland

The fragile early childhood education system has been pushed to its limit in the wake of pandemic shutdowns, rising costs, and a growing teacher shortage. Yet the dedicated preschool providers in our community have continued to prioritize quality for Cleveland’s kids and families.

Enrollment levels in many Cleveland neighborhoods show promising gains.

2023
2022
2021
2019
2018
2016
2015
2023
Map showing the neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio, each labeled and shaded in different colors to distinguish boundaries.
2022
Map showing various neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio, each labeled and color-coded, delineating boundaries within the city.
2021
A color-coded map shows the neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio, each labeled with its name and outlined with clear boundaries.
2019
Map showing various neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio, each represented in different colors and labeled with their respective names.
2018
Map showing the neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio, each labeled and shaded in different colors to distinguish between areas.
2016
Map showing labeled neighborhoods in Cleveland, Ohio, each shaded in various colors to distinguish different areas, including Downtown, University, Old Brooklyn, and Collinwood-Nottingham.
2015
Map showing the neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio, each labeled by name and highlighted in different colors to delineate boundaries.

Under 10%

10%-29%

30%-59%

60%-99%

100% & higher

No preschool seats

Enrollment in High-Quality Preschool still lags behind pre-pandemic levels.

More than three quarters of children enrolled in preschool are in high-quality programs.

There are currently 245 high-quality preschool providers in the City of Cleveland.

61%

of center-based providers are high-quality

37%

of home-based providers are high-quality

The number of high-quality preschool programs in Cleveland continues to grow.

Logo with colorful abstract figures forming a circle to the left of the bold, navy text "STARTING POINT.

Capacity, enrollment, and preschool provider rating data powered by Starting Point.
NOTE: Population data based on the US Census Bureau, Census 2010 and Census 2020 and 2016-2020 ACS 5-year estimates.
All data presented in this Snapshot reflect progress as of June 2023.

Two young girls stand and smile on a green play structure outdoors, with a brick house visible in the background.

Thank You

These incredible results would also not be possible without our partners at Starting Point, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and Cuyahoga County Office of Early Childhood—Invest in Children who have supported preschool providers across the city to earn their Step Up To Quality ratings and continue to increase their quality. We are so grateful for their continued partnership and dedication to Cleveland’s young children.

Data for this Snapshot were gathered from several sources, to whom we owe a debt of gratitude for providing their time and expertise. In particular, we thank Starting Point and Case Western Reserve University, through the Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, which worked with PRE4CLE to collect and analyze our community’s preschool data. And lastly, we thank the preschool providers for willingly sharing their data with Starting Point.

Logo with colorful abstract figures forming a circle to the left of the bold, navy text "STARTING POINT.
Case Western Reserve University logo featuring a stylized sunburst and the university name in blue text.
Logo with overlapping yellow and orange shapes and blue text reading "Invest in Children.
The Cleveland Metropolitan School District logo with stylized blue "C" and three colored swooshes next to the district name in blue text.

Sign up for our newsletter to receive regular updates from PRE4CLE. 

A geometric design featuring overlapping blue and green arrows arranged in a circular, star-like pattern with a small green hexagon at the center.

Support Our Work

Your donation gives Cleveland’s children a strong start. 

Give a Gift Today
  • For Families
  • For Preschools
  • Provider Hub
  • Resources
  • Get in Touch
  • FAQs
  • About Us
  • Our Work
  • Get Involved
  • Cleveland Early Learning Spaces
  • Kindergarten Readiness Snapshot
  • Preschool Discovery Tool
Logo with the text "PRE4CLE" in white capital letters, with the number 4 in light green. The background is black.

+ 216.901.4257

info@pre4cle.org

© 2025 PRE4CLE
Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Cookie Policy | Disclaimer | Privacy Settings
Site by Wonderly