The Annie E. Casey Foundation
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Pennsylvania

Statistics on children, youth and families in Pennsylvania from the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children

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Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children

Change Indicator

Publicly Funded, High-Quality Pre-K - Number of children enrolled by program and percent of population in Pennsylvania

Publicly Funded, High-Quality Pre-K - Number of children enrolled by program and percent of population

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Why This Indicator Matters

The experiences and interactions that young children have early in life significantly affect their brain development and establish the foundation for all future learning.[1] High-quality pre-k focuses on nurturing children’s minds during these critical years of growth to ensure they enter kindergarten with the skills needed to thrive.[2] Quality early childhood education has been linked to numerous positive outcomes, including increased executive functioning and social skills, higher academic achievement and high school graduation rates, lower criminal involvement, better health, and higher earnings.[3] Data also reveal that achievement gaps between the poorest and wealthiest Americans exist before children even enter kindergarten and these disparities are continuing to grow overtime.[4] This makes access essential for all children’s short- and long-term success, especially those from disadvantaged families.

While there is no universal definition for “high-quality” pre-k, the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) has established 10 minimum policy benchmarks for highly effective preschool programs.[5] Based on NIEER’s analysis, to be considered high-quality, pre-k programs must follow early learning and development standards, employ well educated and trained teachers, have small class sizes with a staff to child ratio of 1:10 or better, and use continuous quality improvement systems. Pennsylvania’s quality improvement system is known as Keystone STARS and provides participating early learning programs with a quality rating score from STAR 1 to STAR 4, with the higher STAR level representing higher quality standards.[6] Programs must meet certain quality standards relating to staff education, learning environment, leadership/management, and family/community partnerships at each STAR level.


[1] Workman, S. & Ullrich, R. (2017). Quality 101: Identifying the Core Components of a High-Quality Early Childhood Program. Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/quality-101-identifying-the-core-components-of-a-high-quality-early-childhood-program/

[2] City of Philadelphia. (2024) Quality Pre-K. Office of Children and Families. https://www.phila.gov/programs/quality-pre-k/#:~:text=For%20children,rates%2C%20and%20higher%20earning%20potential

[3] Schoch, A., Gerson, C., Halle, T., & Bredeson, M. (2023). Children’s Learning and Development Benefits from High-Quality Early Care and Education: A Summary of the Evidence. Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/opre/%232023-226%20Benefits%20from%20ECE%20Highlight%20508.pdf

[4] Child Trends. (2018). High-Quality Preschool can Support Healthy Development and Learning. https://www.childtrends.org/publications/high-quality-preschool-can-support-healthy-development-and-learning

[5] National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER). (2019). Download NIEER’s Benchmark for High-Quality Pre-K. https://nieer.org/research-library/download-nieers-benchmarks-high-quality-pre-k

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Definition and Source

PROVIDER

Definition

Publicly funded, high-quality pre-k: Includes the distinct count of PA Pre-K Counts, Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program and Child Care Works enrollments in Keystone STARS 3 and 4; Head Start; and school district pre-k.

Percentages represent total child population ages 3 to 4 served.

Early Head Start enrollments are excluded since the age is not the pre-kindergarten targeted population of ages 3 and 4 years.

Data Source

Federal Office of Head Start (prior to 2012), Pennsylvania Head Start Association, Head Start grantees, and PA Departments of Education and Human Services, Office of Child Development and Early Learning. Decennial Census.

Population estimates are provided by the Pennsylvania State Data Center and Pennsylvania Department of Health.

Notes

Prior to 2013-14, Head Start figures designated the number of slots available, not the number of children enrolled.  Throughout the year, multiple children could use one slot.

Beginning with 2013-14 data,
   - the Head Start category only includes Federal Head Start data
   - the Pre-K Counts category is no longer used
   - the unduplicated count of children in Pre-K Counts, Head Start - State, and Child Care Works in Keystone STAR 3 or 4 providers was added.  This data is not available for prior years.

NOTE: The 2015-16 county totals do not compare to the Path Forward Report issued in December 2016. The numbers in this table are unduplicated at the county level; whereas, the Path Forward report is based on enrollment within each facility.

Data not available for 2017-18.

S = Suppressed.

Last Updated

April 2025