A 2-year-old effort to create universal access to preschool in Massachusetts has done little to get more children in programs, a new report says.
The report released last week by the state board of early education and care says efforts have instead provided more than 100 programs with new classroom materials, computers, or teacher bonuses, but have done little to make those programs more affordable to more children. There is still a waiting list of 4,400 children seeking state financial assistance to attend preschool.
The report found that the roughly 130 providers participating in the pilot program said that improving their teaching staffs was their top priority. Roughly half of the grant funding has been used to train and retain teachers by raising salaries.
