Rhode Island Senate Passes Bills For Universal Pre-K

PROVIDENCE, RI — The Rhode Island Senate today approved two bills to set the state on a path to offering universal free prekindergarten to 3- and 4-year-olds.

Both bills were sponsored by state Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Hanna M. Gallo, D-Cranston and West Warwick.

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One bill "calls for a state-managed publicly funded prekindergarten program to be sustained and expanded in a mixed-delivery system that includes Head Start programs, school districts, licensed center-based, licensed family child-care providers and family child-care networks," according to a media release.

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The other "updates the Early Childhood Categorical Fund in the school funding formula law to clarify that funds can be used to support both the state-run pre-K program and Head Start," the release said.

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“Research has shown how incredibly beneficial pre-K is for children, improving everything from test scores and behavior to college enrollment later on," Gallo said in the release.

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"Children who enter kindergarten with experience in school are prepared, and that head start helps them succeed not only that year, but throughout their education and when they enter the workforce,” Gallo said. “Access to such a life-changing resource should never depend on where a child lives or whether a family can afford it.”

The bills now head to the House.

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