General

Pre-kindergarten Initiative in 2013-14:
Washington Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP)

State agency with administrative authority over pre-K:
Washington State Department of Early Learning

Availability of program:
36 out of 39 counties/parishes (92%)1

Are districts, counties, or towns in Washington required to offer this pre-kindergarten initiative?
No, competitive2

Hours of operation per day:
Determined locally4

Is there a formal partnership at the state level to provide extended day services through collaboration with other agencies and programs?
No4

Enrollment

Fall 2013, Total children:
8,741

Fall 2011, by age:
1,686 3-year-olds; 7,055 4-year-olds3

Fall 2011, by type of administering agency:
Public schools, 4,070; Nonpublic schools, 4,671

Program enrollment, Fall 2013, by operating schedule:
School day, 882; Part day, 7,8334

Eligibility

Minimum age for eligibility:
3 by August 31

Maximum age for eligibility:
4 years, 11 months by August 31

Kindergarten eligibility age:
5 by August 31

Does state policy allow any exceptions to the age requirement for prekindergarten or kindergarten eligibility?
Yes5

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 age

What was the state-specified income requirement during the 2013-14 program year?
110% FPL

To whom, or to what percentage of children, does the income requirement apply?
At least 90% of children must meet the income requirement.

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?
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; Other state-specified risk factors: expulsion due to behavior; in kinship care; single parent; transferring from Head Start or Early Head Start; parent deployed to combat zone in last year; parent incarcerated, mental illness; health care access; migrant6

How many of the specified risk factors must be present for eligibility?
1

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 factors6

Class Sizes

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

Staff-child ratio requirement:
3 and 4-year-olds, 1 to 9

Teachers

Minimum teacher degree requirement:
AA (public and nonpublic)10

Required teacher certification, licensure, and/or endorsement:
Public and nonpublic: 30 quarter credits in ECE (birth to age 8)10

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 by percent:
HSD, 0.7%; CDA, 3.1%; AA, 40.3%; BA, 40%; MA, 8.5%; Some college, 2.6%; Unknown, 4.7%

Education level of teachers during 2011-12 totals:
HSD, 3; CDA, 13; AA, 170; BA, 152; MA, 36; Some college, 11; Unknown, 2010

Teacher in-service requirement:
15 clock hours per year

Minimum assistant teacher degree requirement:
CDA or 12 credits in ECE (public and nonpublic)11

Assistant teacher specialized training requirement:
Public and nonpublic: CDA or 12 credits in ECE

Services

Meal requirement:
Depends on length of program day7

Support services for English Language Learners and families:
Bilingual non-English classes are permitted in pre-K; Programs are required to screen and assess all children; A home language survey is sent home at the beginning of the school year; Other; Other ELL service plans are locally determined8

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 visits9

Regulations

Screening and referral requirements:
Required: Vision; Hearing; Height/Weight/BMIImmunizations; Full physical exam; Developmental; Dental; Locally determined: Psychological/Behavioral

State’s early learning standards document in 2013-14.
2013 ECEAP Performance Standards and Washington State Early Learning and Development Guidelines

For more information about the early learning standards in 2013-14:
Guidelines are at: http://www.del.wa.gov/publications/development/docs/Guidelines.pdf. Performance standards: http://www.del.wa.gov/publications/eceap/docs/ECEAP_PerformanceStandards.pdf

Funding

Days per week the state prekindergarten initiative is funded to operate using state funds:
Determined locally, 3 or 4 days/week4

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

Actual fiscal year 2014 spending for this state prekindergarten initiative:
$58,198,086

All funding sources:
State, $58,198,08612

State funding sources and amounts:
State general fund, $18,198,086; Opportunities Pathway Account (lottery), $40,000,000

Federal funding sources and amounts:
None

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, Other settings: Local governments, Colleges/universities, Educational service districts

Agencies with which subcontracting is permitted:
Public schools, Head Start, Private CC, Faith-based centers, Family CC,Other settings: Local governments, Colleges/universities, Educational service districts13

Is there a required local match for this program?
No

Select a state program to view details.


Washington Footnotes

  1. Of the three counties not served by this program, two are served by Head Start and the other is sparsely populated.
  2. Slots were awarded through open competitive RFPs for the 2008-09 and 2014-15 school years. Slots were awarded based on county poverty levels for the 2011-12 and 2013-14 school years.
  3. Total number is based on funded slots.
  4. A minimum of 320 hours per year is required, and each class session must be at least 2.5 hours. The school year must be at least 30 calendar weeks. A typical program operates 3 hours a day, 3 or 4 days a week for the school year.
  5. Many children in wrap-around child care at the same site are not counted in the school day category because ECEAP program standards are not in operation during those hours.
  6. A minimum of 320 hours per year is required, and each class session must be at least 2.5 hours. The school year must be at least 30 calendar weeks. A typical program operates 3 hours a day, 3 or 4 days a week for the school year.
  7. There are no exceptions for pre-K enrollment. For kindergarten, see exceptions at https://www.k12.wa.us/EarlyLearning/Parents/EnrollingKindergarten.aspx
  8. Income and other risk factors are weighted via a priority point system. Children with the highest points are enrolled into available slots. 4-year-olds have higher priority than 3-year-olds. 4-year-old children who are homeless, in foster care, or from families with very low FPL have the highest priority.
  9. Contractors offering sessions lasting fewer than 3 hours must provide a breakfast or lunch. An additional snack or meal must be offered when round-trip transportation extends the time children are away from home by an hour or more. Contractors providing sessions lasting 3 or more hours must provide breakfast or lunch, and provide a snack. Contractors must participate in the USDA CACFP or National School Breakfast and Lunch program, and many exceed these standards.
  10. Performance standards require that contractors ensure a culturally relevant curriculum that reflects the cultures of enrolled children; supports ongoing development of each child’s home language, while helping each child learn English; and includes and demonstrates respect for diverse family structures and cultures.
  11. Parent-teacher conferences are required. Separately family support visits are required, but not required to be in the home.
  12. All persons serving in the role of ECEAP lead teacher must meet one of the following qualifications: an AA or higher degree with the equivalent of 30 college quarter credits in early childhood education. These 30 credits may be included in the degree or in addition to the degree. A valid Washington State Teaching Certificate with an endorsement in Early Childhood Education (Pre-K–Grade 3) or Early Childhood Special Education. In parts of the state with a shortage of qualified teachers, some teachers currently have an HSD or CDA, but they are on an approved professional development plan to attain the full qualification.
  13. For both public and non-public settings, assistant teachers must have a CDA or 12 quarter credits of ECE, or be grandfathered by holding this role for the same agency prior to July 1, 1999.
  14. Non-required local spending amounts are unknown and include both financial resources and in-kind aid.
  15. There must be no religious programming during ECEAP hours.
  16. The state’s QRIS system, Early Achievers, requires the use of ECERS-R and CLASS for structured observations. This system is in the pilot phase, starting with 86 of the 271 sites, and will be fully implemented by July 1, 2015. Starting in the 2012-2013 year, Teaching Strategies GOLD was used for documenting all children’s learning. Additionally, there is an intensive on-site review of all ECEAP Performance Standards every 4 years.
  17. The Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) was directed by the state legislature to conduct a retrospective evaluation of ECEAP, using previously collected data to examine outcomes of children who have participated in the program compared with children who did not participate. WSIPP developed a statistical model to determine whether attending ECEAP had any impact on student academic outcomes. They found that ECEAP has a positive impact on third, fourth, and fifth grade test scores.
  18. Teaching Strategies GOLD
  19. As of fall 2012, WaKIDS was mandatory for state-funded full-day kindergarten and voluntary in other schools. WaKIDS includes the Teaching Strategies GOLD child assessment at kindergarten entry. In the 2013-14 year, 44 percent of the state’s public school kindergarteners were assessed.