Why Montessori / The State of Preschool Education

Louisiana | Block Grant Program

General

Pre-kindergarten Initiative in 2013-14:
Louisiana 8(g) Student Enhancement Block Grant Program

State agency with administrative authority over pre-K:
Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

Availability of program:
66 out of 70 school districts (94%)

Are districts, counties, or towns in Louisiana required to offer this pre-kindergarten initiative?
No, optional1

Hours of operation per day:
School day, 6 hoursd/day

Is there a formal partnership at the state level to provide extended day services through collaboration with other agencies and programs?
No

Enrollment

Fall 2013, Total children:
2,551

Fall 2011, by age:
2,551 4-year-olds

Fall 2011, by type of administering agency:
Public schools, 2,551

Program enrollment, Fall 2013, by operating schedule:
School day, 2,551

Eligibility

Minimum age for eligibility:
4 by September 30

Maximum age for eligibility:
5 by September 30

Kindergarten eligibility age:
5 by September 30

Does state policy allow any exceptions to the age requirement for prekindergarten or kindergarten eligibility?
Yes2

State policy on enrolling children in state pre-K when they are eligible for kindergarten:
Children may not enroll in pre-K if they are age-eligible for kindergarten

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 age3

What was the state-specified income requirement during the 2013-14 program year?
Eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, or 185% FPL3

To whom, or to what percentage of children, does the income requirement apply?
priority is given to students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch; however if all income eligible children are otherwise served, additional students may also be served based on screening

Is there a sliding payment scale based on income?
No3

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 duty3

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

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 factors3

Class Sizes

Maximum class size:
4-year-olds, 20

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

Teachers

Minimum teacher degree requirement:
BA (public)

Required teacher certification, licensure, and/or endorsement:
Public: Early Interventionist (3 years-K); Nursey School (3-5 years); PK-3 (4 years to 3rd grade); Noncategorical preschool handicapped (3/5/2014); Kindergarten6

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 by percent:
BA, 100%

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 totals:
BA, 152

Teacher in-service requirement:
18 clock hours per year

Minimum assistant teacher degree requirement:
HSD or Equivalent (public); Not Applicable (nonpublic)7

Assistant teacher specialized training requirement:
None

Services

Meal requirement:
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; A home language survey is sent home at the beginning of the school year

Support services required for all programs:
Parent education or job training; Parenting support or training; Parent involvement activitiesChild health services; Nutrition information; Referral for social services; Transition to K activities

 

Regulations

Screening and referral requirements:
Required: Vision; Hearing; Immunizations; Locally determined: Height/Weight/BMI; Blood pressure; Psychological/Behavioral; Full physical exam; Developmental; Dental4

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

For more information about the early learning standards in 2013-14:
http://bese.louisiana.gov/documents-resources/policies-bulletins5

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:
$8,487,519

All funding sources:
State, $8,487,5198

State funding sources and amounts:
8(g) funds, $84,87,5198

Federal funding sources and amounts:
None8

Is funding for this state prekindergarten initiative determined by a school funding or state aid formula?
Yes8

Agencies eligible to receive funding directly:
Public schools

Agencies with which subcontracting is permitted:
None

Is there a required local match for this program?
No

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Louisiana | Block Grant Program Footnotes

 

  1. Districts receive an allocation and they determine whether to use the funds for the pre-K focus area.
  2. Any child evaluated and identified as gifted may enter kindergarten early.
  3. Priority is given to students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch; however if all income eligible children are otherwise served, additional students may also be served if they are deemed developmentally unprepared.
  4. The state doesn’t set specific income eligibility requirements for this program. This program stipulates that priority be given to children from low-income families. Districts that do not provide universal access are expected to use screening in the selection process. Beyond that, eligibility is determined by individual child and family characteristics.
  5. Priority is given to students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch; however, if all income eligible children are otherwise served, additional students may also be served if they are deemed developmentally unprepared.
  6. This program strongly encourages vision and hearing screening.
  7. The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approved the new Birth to Five Early Learning and Development Standards in April 2013. Creative Arts Standards are also contained in the Louisiana standards. English Language Arts and Math standards were aligned in 2011 with the Common Core State Standards for Kindergarten; Science and Social Studies standards were also revised.
  8. Effective June 1, 2002, Louisiana issued a Pre-K–3 license instead of stand-alone Nursery School and Kindergarten licenses. Teachers holding a Kindergarten license may be required to take additional coursework or demonstrate knowledge/competence to add an early childhood endorsement to their original license, permitting them to teach in pre-K without the parish/district/charter requesting a temporary out-of-field teaching authorization.