Indiana House OKs preschool pilot program

Up to $10 million a year in state funds would provide grants for low-income Hoosier children to attend preschool, under an agreement reached today by key lawmakers and Gov. Mike Pence.

The pilot program passed the Indiana House by a vote of 92-8. The measure, in House Bill 1004, is expected to be approved later today by the full Senate as the legislature prepares to adjourn for the year.

If approved, it would mark the first time Indiana has designated state funds for pre-kindergarten education, joining 41 other states that already do.

The program could start as early as this fall, but at the latest, in the fall of 2015 for a minimum of 1,000 4-year-olds in five counties.

After the House vote, Speaker Brian Bosma said the program could fund up to 4,000 children in quality preschool programs, with up to a third of the funding coming from the private sector.

“We’re just really, really gratified that we were able to achieve this long-standing goal for House Republicans,” said Bosma.

Funding preschool education also has been a long-time goal for Democratic lawmakers, too.

Rep. Ed DeLaney, D-Indianapolis, who said he has supported preschool for 40 years, noted that it took the legislature months to come up with a very small program.

“Nobody should be beating their chests,” he said, about passing this program.

Establishing a pre-K pilot program is one of Pence’s top legislative priorities, although he originally wanted to create a statewide program. But any type of pilot program was in doubt earlier this year after the Senate reduced the proposal to merely create a study commission on the issue.

“I think this is a great first step,” said Rep. Robert Behning, R-Indianapolis, chairman of the House Education Committee, earlier in the day.

Claire Fiddian-Green, Pence’s special assistant for education, said the governor is pleased with the pilot program. She said it reflects his desire to help low-income families and to further study the best way to provide preschool for more children.

Under the compromise, the state’s Family and Social Services Administration would establish a pilot program using up to $10 million from Child Care and Development grant funds and money reverted back from FSSA’s various departments and divisions.

At least 10 percent but no more than 50 percent of the tuition for eligible children under the pilot program must be paid from private donations either obtained by providers of the programs or distributed by FSSA.

So, with the outside funds, as much as $15 million could be spent on pre-K during the first year.

The pilot program would be set up in five counties to be selected by FSSA. It would provide grants between $2,500 to $6,800 for eligible children. Depending on how much is spent for each child, the number of children served could go up to 4,000 annually.

Families eligible could only have incomes of 127 percent or less of the federal poverty level. The

Public or private day cares or other providers would be eligible to participate, if they meet certain educational and other requirements specified by the FSSA.

Originally, Pence had sought a pre-K voucher program that would have allowed children to transition to private schools with state vouchers. That provision was dropped during negotiations.

That didn’t please Glenn Tebbe, executive director of the Indiana Catholic Conference. During testimony Thursday morning, he said low-income families who want private school options will have to find other ways to fund kindergarten or have their children attend public schools and then transition back to private schools. The state’s existing voucher plan does not include kindergarten.

“This creates a potential disruption in a seamless education for those children,” said Tebbe. “It interrupts the early educational program, which I think is unnecessary.”

Derek Redelman, vice president of education and workforce policy for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, was reserved in his support of the limited program.

“It’s a step forward, it gives an opportunity, not as strong of an opportunity as we might have hoped,” he said.

Redelman said he would have preferred more children would be served and that the state would have committed more than just funds reverted from the FSSA’s budget.

Under the bill, the FSSA also will carry out a study of students who participate in the pilot program to track their achievement levels in kindergarten and later grades. The bill also sets up a state pre-kindergarten and early learning study commission to further develop parameters for pre-K education in Indiana and study how to better involve and equip parents in their children’s education.

Rep. Earline Rogers, D-Gary, a long-time advocate of early childhood education, said, “I think it’s enough of a program that we can gather our own data and assess if it’s working or not.”

This story will be updated.

Call Star reporter Barb Berggoetz at (317) 444-6294. Follow her on Twitter @barbberg.