One out of every four 3- and 4-year-old children in California is not enrolled in preschool of any kind, according to an interactive map created by the left-leaning Center for American Progress. The map, which uses U.S. Census Bureau data to illustrate how the “preschool access gap” varies across the country, puts California in the middle of the pack.
California’s state-funded preschool program and Head Start combined only enroll 25 percent of the state’s preschool-age children, according to the interactive map. Another 31 percent are enrolled in private preschool. The rest, 44 percent, are not enrolled in any preschool program.
The Center for American Progress has come out strongly in favor of the president’s plan to invest $75 billion over the next decade to help states provide preschool to every child.