General

Pre-kindergarten Initiative in 2013-14:
Illinois Preschool for All

State agency with administrative authority over pre-K:
Illinois State Board of Education

Availability of program:
102 out of 102 counties/parishes (100%)1

Are districts, counties, or towns in Illinois required to offer this pre-kindergarten initiative?
No, competitive

Hours of operation per day:
School day, 4.5 to 8 hours/day; Part day, 2.5 to 3.5 hours/day2

Is there a formal partnership at the state level to provide extended day services through collaboration with other agencies and programs?
No2

Enrollment

Fall 2013, Total children:
75,231

Fall 2011, by age:
31,225 3-year-olds; 43,778 4-year-olds; 228 5-year-olds1

Fall 2011, by type of administering agency:
Public schools, 69,168; Nonpublic schools, 6,063

Program enrollment, Fall 2013, by operating schedule:
School day, 10,956; Part day, 64,2752

Eligibility

Minimum age for eligibility:
3 by September 1

Maximum age for eligibility:
5 by September 1

Kindergarten eligibility age:
5 by September 1

Does state policy allow any exceptions to the age requirement for prekindergarten or kindergarten eligibility?
Yes3

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-K3

Aside from age, how is eligibility determined for individual children for this state prekindergarten initiative?
Eligibility is determined by individual child or family characteristics in addition to age

What was the state-specified income requirement during the 2013-14 program year?
Low income is one of the risk factors taken into account in determining eligibility.4

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

Is there a sliding payment scale based on income?
No4

Is child eligibility for this state prekindergarten initiative ever reassessed after a child has been enrolled in the program?
No

Risk Factors

Risk factors besides income that can be used to determine eligibility:
Child disability or developmental delay; Low parental education level; History of abuse, neglect, or family violence; Homelessness or unstable housing; Non-English speaking family members; Parental substance abuse; Risk that child will not be ready for kindergarten; Teen parent; Low birth weight or other child health risk; Child history of foster care; Parental active military duty; Other state-specified risk factors4

How many of the specified risk factors must be present for eligibility?
Multiple risk factors4

How do these risk factors relate to the income cutoff for the state pre-K program?
Meeting the income cutoff can count as one of the risk factors

Class Sizes

Maximum class size:
3- and 4-year-olds, 20

Staff-child ratio requirement:
3- and 4-year-olds, 1 to 10

Teachers

Minimum teacher degree requirement:
BA (public and nonpublic)

Required teacher certification, licensure, and/or endorsement:
Public and nonpublic: Professional Educator License with ECE endorsement (B-3rd)

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 by percent:
Breakdown not available

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 totals:
Breakdown not available

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

Minimum assistant teacher degree requirement:
AA (public and nonpublic)5

Assistant teacher specialized training requirement:
Public and nonpublic: Educator License with Stipulations with a paraprofessional endorsement (PKto Age 21)

Services

Meal requirement:
Lunch and Snack (school day); Snack (part day)

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

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

Regulations

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

State’s early learning standards document in 2013-14.
Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards

For more information about the early learning standards in 2013-14:
http://www.isbe.net/earlychi/pdf/early_learning_standards.pdf

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 year

Actual fiscal year 2014 spending for this state prekindergarten initiative:
$276,431,173

All funding sources:
State, $238,037,465; Non-required local, $38,393,7086

State funding sources and amounts:
General Revenue Funds $238,037,4656

Federal funding sources and amounts:
None6

Is funding for this state prekindergarten initiative determined by a school funding or state aid formula?
No

Agencies eligible to receive funding directly:
Public schools, Head Start, Private CC, Faith-based centers, Family CC, Other settings: Higher Education

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

Is there a required local match for this program?
No

Select a state program to view details.


Illinois Footnotes

  1. Children from all counties participate; however, funding does not provide services for all children whose parents want them to attend.
  2. There are 28 programs that offer school-day sessions only, 21 programs that offer both school-day and part-day sessions, and 413 programs that offer part-day sessions only. There is not a formal partnership but child care centers are one of the eligible recipients of PFA funding and provide wraparound services for the children in PFA who are also in their center.
  3. School districts may enroll children in kindergarten before they are age 5 based on local policy. Kindergarten-aged children with IEPs reflecting preschool placement may remain in the program. A child must be 3 years old before he/she enters the program. To start the school year, the child must be 3 on or before September 1. If there is a space available in the classroom, a child may enter the program during the year once he/she is 3 years old.
  4. Low income is one of the risk factors taken into account in determining eligibility. There is not a predetermined risk factor cut-off, but children are eligible based on multiple risk factors, and priority is given to children with the greatest risk as indicated by the number and severity of factors. Low income is one of the risk factors included in the weighted eligibility criteria.
  5. The teacher aide in the classroom must hold an Educator License with Stipulations with a paraprofessional educator endorsement. To obtain this they must meet one of the following requirements: 1. Holds an associate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education; 2. Has completed at least 60 semester hours of credit from a regionally accredited institution of higher education (excluding remedial coursework); 3. Presents an official score report from Educational Testing Service (ETS) showing a score of 460 or higher on the ParaPro test; or 4. Presents evidence of earning the following scores on the Work Keys test (offered by ACT): Reading for Information (4), Writing/Business Writing (3), and Applied Mathematics (4).
  6. Additional state funds include $55,560,988 for 0–3 programs and $6,593,947 for statewide infrastructure and program administration. The programs access federal funds such as IDEA, USDA CACFP, McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, Title I, etc. but the state does not collect data on federal funds.