Why Montessori / The State of Preschool Education

New Jersey | Former Abbott Preschool Program

General

Pre-kindergarten Initiative in 2013-14:
New Jersey Former Abbott Preschool Program

State agency with administrative authority over pre-K:
Division of Early Childhood Education State Head Start Collaboration Office; Department of Human Services, Division of Family Development; Department of Children and Families, Office of Licensing1

Availability of program:
35 out of 590 school districts (6%)2

Are districts, counties, or towns in New Jersey required to offer this pre-kindergarten initiative?
Required for some2

Hours of operation per day:
School day, 6 hours/day4

Is there a formal partnership at the state level to provide extended day services through collaboration with other agencies and programs?
Yes , wraparound through DHS4

Enrollment

Fall 2013, Total children:
43,896

Fall 2011, by age:
20,259 3-year-olds; 23,637 4-year-olds

Fall 2011, by type of administering agency:
Public schools, 43,8963

Program enrollment, Fall 2013, by operating schedule:
School day, 43,8964

Eligibility

Minimum age for eligibility:
3 by locally determined date

Maximum age for eligibility:
4 by locally determined date

Kindergarten eligibility age:
5 by locally determined date

Does state policy allow any exceptions to the age requirement for prekindergarten or kindergarten eligibility?
Yes6

State policy on enrolling children in state pre-K when they are eligible for kindergarten:
Kindergarten age-eligible children with documented disabilities may enroll in pre-K6

Aside from age, how is eligibility determined for individual children for this state prekindergarten initiative?
All age-eligible children in districts offering the program, or in the entire state, may enroll7

What was the state-specified income requirement during the 2013-14 program year?
No income requirement

To whom, or to what percentage of children, does the income requirement apply?

Is there a sliding payment scale based on income?
No

Is child eligibility for this state prekindergarten initiative ever reassessed after a child has been enrolled in the program?
Yes8

Risk Factors

Risk factors besides income that can be used to determine eligibility:
Not applicable

How many of the specified risk factors must be present for eligibility?
NA

How do these risk factors relate to the income cutoff for the state pre-K program?
No income requirement

Class Sizes

Maximum class size:
3-year-olds, 15; 4-year-olds, 15

Staff-child ratio requirement:
3- and 4-year-olds, 2 to 15

Teachers

Minimum teacher degree requirement:
BA (public and nonpublic)

Required teacher certification, licensure, and/or endorsement:
Public and nonpublic: P-3 certificate (P-3); KÐ5 certificate (P-5); Teacher of Students with Disabilities (P-12); Nursery school (P-K); Teacher of the Deaf or Hard of Hearing; Handicapped; or Blind/Partially Sighted (P-12)11

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 by percent:
BA, 73%; MA, 26%; PhD, 1%

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 totals:
BA, 2278; MA, 816; PhD, 17

Teacher in-service requirement:
100 clock hours per 5 years

Minimum assistant teacher degree requirement:
HSD or Equivalent (public and nonpublic)12

Assistant teacher specialized training requirement:
None

Services

Meal requirement:
Breakfast; Lunch; Snack

Support services for English Language Learners and families:
Bilingual non-English classes are permitted in pre-K; Monolingual non-English classes are permitted in pre-K; Professional development or coaching is provided for teachers; Programs are required to screen and assess all children; A home language survey is sent home at the beginning of the school year; Information must be presented to parents in their primary language; A systematic, written plan must be in place on how to work with English Language Learners; Translators or bilingual staff are available if children do not speak English; Other9

Support services required for all programs:
Parenting support or training; Parent involvement activities; Child health services; Nutrition information; Referral for social services; Transition to K activities; Parent conferences and/or home visits

 

Regulations

Screening and referral requirements:
Required: Vision; Hearing; Height/Weight/BMI; Immunizations; Developmental; Dental; Locally determined: Blood pressure; Psychological/Behavioral; Full physical exam; Other

State’s early learning standards document in 2013-14.
Preschool Teaching and Learning Standards

For more information about the early learning standards in 2013-14:
http://www.state.nj.us/education/ece/guide/10

Funding

Days per week the state prekindergarten initiative is funded to operate using state funds:
5 days per week

Annual operating schedule for this state-funded prekindergarten initiative:
Academic year5

Actual fiscal year 2014 spending for this state prekindergarten initiative:
$585,440,952

All funding sources:
State, $585,440,952

State funding sources and amounts:
State Preschool Education Aid, $585,440,952

Federal funding sources and amounts:
TANF, IDEA, Title I, CACFP/NSLP/NSBP, Head Start, amounts not reported

Is funding for this state prekindergarten initiative determined by a school funding or state aid formula?
Yes13

Agencies eligible to receive funding directly:
Public schools14

Agencies with which subcontracting is permitted:
Public schools, Head Start, Private CC, Faith-based centers14

Is there a required local match for this program?
No

Select a state program to view details.


New Jersey | Former Abbott Preschool Program Footnotes

  1. Primary oversight for the preschool education program is through the state Department of Education’s (DOE) Division of Early Childhood Education. The Department of Children and Families oversees licensing of private preschool providers. The Department of Human Services, Division of Family Development oversees the before- and after-school portion of the preschool program. Coordination occurs with the Head Start State Collaboration Office, which is housed in DOE.
  2. Thirty-one districts are required to offer the program due to a state Supreme Court decision. The remaining four are required to offer the program after applying to expand their existing program starting in the 2008-2009 school year.
  3. There were 25,032 children are in nonpublic sites but administrative responsibility remains with the public school district.
  4. All programs must operate for at least 6 hours. Some programs offer extended-day programs with an additional 4 hours of wrap-around care to income-eligible children. The wrap-around program is funded through the Department of Human Services.
  5. All programs must operate for at least 6 hours. Some programs offer extended-day programs with an additional 4 hours of wrap-around care to income-eligible children. The wrap-around program is funded through the Department of Human Services.
  6. The DOE funds the program for the school calendar year. If the district/provider runs a wrap-around program through DHS, the program would then extend services for the full calendar year. Some districts have also used either surplus/local or Title I funding to provide summer care.
  7. Kindergarten-age eligible children with an IEP that requires enrollment in a preschool program may enroll in the program but are funded through special education.
  8. The program is offered in the poor urban districts initially identified by the NJ Supreme Court in 1990 as having at least 40 percent of children who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch and 5 additional districts designated by the Legislature. All 3- and 4-year-old children within those districts are eligible to participate. Kindergarten age-eligible children with an IEP that requires enrollment in a preschool program may enroll in the program but are funded through special education.
  9. Only district residents are eligible for the program. Children who move outside of the district would no longer be eligible to attend the program. Districts continually monitor to ensure that children are still district residents and therefore still eligible for the program.
  10. Bilingual classes are generally encouraged. In specific cases, monolingual non-English classes may be permitted as part of a transition into a bilingual model including English, but a bilingual, non-English class (while not prohibited) would not be encouraged.
  11. Alignment with Common Core State Standards was completed in 2013.
  12. Teachers with a Standard Elementary School Endorsement (Preschool through grade 8) may teach preschool if they have an equivalent of two academic years of full-time experience teaching 3- and 4-year-olds or demonstrate content knowledge in line with a district’s established documentation requirement. Additionally, teachers with the following certifications may apply for preschool licensure, take the Praxis exam, and begin the process of obtaining a P–3 certificate: K–5 certificate, out-of-state certificate that includes preschool, Teacher of the Blind or Partially Sighted, Teacher of the Deaf or Hard of Hearing, Teacher of the Handicapped certificate, or Teacher of Students with Disabilities certificate. Nursery school (P–K) is no longer granted but still recognized for current holders.
  13. In districts or schools supported by Title I funding, assistant teachers are required to meet the education/degree requirements specified for Title I.
  14. Districts receive a per-pupil amount for each projected child depending upon where the child is being served (i.e., district, Head Start, or provider setting). However, if this amount provides less for the district than it received in the 2008-2009 school year, the district’s aid amount reverts back to what it was in the 2008-2009 school year.
  15. School districts are permitted to subcontract with faith-based programs without religious content.
  16. QRIS participation is encouraged, but not currently required.
  17. Monitoring information is not used to make decisions about whether or not to fund a district/program, but rather to guide the review of districts’ proposed annual budgets.
  18. DOE-approved program quality assessment instrument; performance-based assessment; district-needs assessment; early childhood screening assessment at school entry to determine if child needs comprehensive diagnostic assessment
  19. TS GOLD was used with pilot districts in 2013 – 2014. The first cohort began in 2014 – 2015 with statewide implementation anticipated to be complete within 5 – 6 years.