Strengthen Georgia’s Pre-K

GEEARS applauds the Georgia General Assembly’s historic 2024 investment of nearly $100 million in Georgia’s Lottery-Funded Pre-K, nearly the full amount requested by the House Working Group on Early Childhood Education. We ask that state legislators ensure the continued implementation of the Working Group’s recommendations (e.g., continuing to increase the number of classes to decrease class size over the next three years). In addition, we urge state leaders to:…

Implement a pilot program for three-year-olds as a part of Georgia’s Lottery-Funded Pre-K program

Georgia serves approximately 55% of the state’s four-year-olds through its Pre-K Program. Many states, including Kansas, Arkansas, and Nebraska, serve a significant number of three-year-olds through their state-funded prekindergarten programs. This additional year of high-quality preschool sets up students for success in Kindergarten and beyond and can help alleviate the challenges many families face in affording early care and learning. While many of our state’s 127,000 three-year-olds are missing out on high-quality early education, usable, unrestricted reserves have surged to $1.4 billion over the last decade. A “3K” pilot program could prioritize communities most in need (e.g., areas with low third-grade reading proficiency) through a mixed delivery model in both public school and private child care settings.