This paper discusses extending access to preschool for families in California, focusing on targeting priorities to yield strong enrollment demand and discernible effects on young children's early development and school readiness. It analyzes different targeting mechanisms and suggests experimenting with alternative expansion strategies, rather than investing exclusively in one method. The report also describes which communities would benefit most and considers the criteria for judging the wisdom of targeting options.

Public spending on childcare has increased, but low-income families still face barriers to accessing subsidies. This working paper examines the choices made by 1,974 parents in California who moved from welfare to work and needed childcare. The study found that parents relied on a mix of formal and informal childcare options, and that the expansion of one form of care did not necessarily influence parents' choices.

This policy brief discusses state initiatives in the US aimed at retaining and improving the quality of preschool and childcare staff, with a focus on California's $21 million annual investment. While K-12 reforms have been underway longer and are usually better-funded, early childhood education policymakers and educators will find valuable information about experimental efforts and lessons on systemwide reform.

This report examines the effects of welfare-to-work and childcare capacity building on the childcare system in California, prompted by changes in the childcare system and welfare reform. The study was requested by the California Department of Social Services, and this paper provides an overview of the findings.

The rise in the number of working mothers has led to a greater need for childcare, and investments have been made to support early education. California's childcare programs have seen a surge in funding, including a tax credit program. The policy brief aims to explore if the increased funding has improved access to quality childcare centers and preschools for California families.

This report discusses the lack of knowledge about the impact of welfare-to-work programs on young children since 1996, and how policy leaders are debating ways to aid jobless mothers and enrich their children's lives. The project team followed 948 mothers and preschool-age children for two to four years after the women entered new welfare programs in California, Connecticut, and Florida.

This report examines how welfare-to-work programs have affected the lives of young children since 1996, and how they've impacted the home and childcare settings in which they are raised. The study followed 948 mothers and preschool-age children in California, Connecticut, and Florida for two to four years, using interviews, assessments, and visits to homes and childcare settings. The report highlights the major findings from the study.

This article discusses the role of childcare in promoting the development and opportunities for low-income children, noting that federal and state funding for childcare has increased dramatically since welfare reform. Despite this, children from poor households are less likely to be enrolled in high-quality programs than children from affluent families. To achieve welfare reform's goal of breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty, welfare-to-work programs should increase access to high-quality childcare in low-income neighborhoods.

Many low-income families struggle to afford childcare, even with financial supports. Less than one-fourth of eligible families sign up for subsidies in many communities, leading to disparities in access. The What Works series examines effective programs and policy strategies to increase participation in childcare subsidy programs. The report draws from the Growing Up in Poverty Project, which found highly variable rates of eligible parents using childcare subsidies across CA, CT, and FL. Possible reasons for low utilization and present novel strategies to increase participation are discussed.

The "new" school finance approach investigates how resources are used within schools and classrooms to enhance educational outcomes, rather than focusing solely on spending patterns. The report reviews literature on resource use in education and suggests that additional funding is not sufficient to improve outcomes. Research should analyze how resources are used within classrooms and schools. Policymakers should develop complementary reforms and enact categorical funding. The report warns that education expenditures keep expanding with little to show for them.

This paper examines how mothers select childcare to meet welfare-to-work requirements. Interviews with seven mothers from different ethnic groups show that trust in childcare providers to keep their children safe is the most important criterion. Structural constraints on their choices are also analyzed. The findings suggest that policymakers should focus on trust and legitimacy of childcare providers in addition to supply and educational quality.

A study conducted for the Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services aimed to determine the supply and demand of licensed childcare in the county, with a focus on low-income communities and special types of care. The survey analyzed data at three levels: county-wide, service planning areas, and supervisorial districts. Results showed disparities in childcare supply across the county, with shortages in special types of care and little information on where childcare is needed.

Latino children are less likely to be enrolled in preschools, even after considering household income and maternal employment. Social factors such as language, child-rearing beliefs, and practices also impact center selection. African American families participate at higher rates, while lower enrollment for Latinos is linked to Spanish-speaking households and cultural preferences. Center selection is part of a broader parental agenda of acculturation to middle-class Anglo commitments to prepare children for school.

Proposition 38 allows parents in California to obtain a state chit worth $4,000 and move their child from public to private school, which would significantly affect school financing. This policy brief addresses six key questions about the proposal, including its differences from the 1993 voucher initiative, which families would benefit, how it would impact school spending and taxpayers, and the success of voucher experiments in raising achievement.

California's growing child population will require significant increases in public spending, particularly in education due to immigration, working parents, poverty, and family disorganization. Counties and school districts bear the brunt of providing children's services, but cities have greater fiscal flexibility and revenue-raising potential. This paper provides information on county children's services and trends in county budgets to support further research on county financing for children's services.

Public school funding in the US has seen continuous increases in real funding since 1960, reflecting strong citizen support for public schools and a growing economy. Despite pessimism and recession in the 1980s, real school funding continued to increase substantially. This report provides an overview of school revenues and funding increases needed for education reforms, and details changes in education finance during the 1980s, comparing increases to the levels needed to fund proposed reforms.

California's K-12 schools are supported by a vast amount of public money, and education financing has become an intensely political issue. This report analyzes school financing outcomes, including equity, efficiency, distributional consequences, and academic rigor, and addresses the conditions of school finance equality. The report seeks to provide answers to important questions about the amount of money being spent, how it compares to other states, who benefits from the funding, and whether added state funds have bought more rigorous schooling.

In 1987, the Superintendent of Public Instruction released a document detailing the average costs of California schools for 1985-86, providing a brief summary of school expenditures. However, this report lacks in detail, and this report aims to provide more comprehensive and realistic data on school expenditure patterns. The report serves as an analytical base for exploring issues surrounding school expenditures in California, and the data was provided by the state Department of Education staff.

The California Staff Development Policy Study was initiated to assess the possibilities and limitations of staff development in improving classroom teaching and learning. The study aims to answer four questions related to California's investment in staff development, how staff development activities are administered, and how teachers and administrators judge their effectiveness. The study yields eight main conclusions, presented in terms of investment and focusing on improving the capacities and commitments of California's educators.

This report provides an overview of California's school finance system, including selected school finance facts; descriptions of the general revenue limit and categorical programs funding formulas; and, for each program, the amount appropriated for 1986-87, the number of districts participating, and number of students served.

PACE, a university-based research center, provides "nonpartisan, objective, independent" information on K-12 schooling in CA. Its analyses have been invaluable to lawmakers and educators during the state's active education-reform period. PACE has played a growing role in debates on school issues, exemplified by a heated debate in the CA legislature over the Commission on Teacher Credentialing. PACE offers a model for providing data for education policies when many states are seeking broader information bases. It has helped provide a better understanding of what is happening in education.

The report discusses the implementation and impact of California's State Lottery. During its first year of operation, the lottery generated $1.77 billion in ticket sales, with $689 million going towards public education. However, the article highlights the uncertainty surrounding the use of these funds and concerns about the reliability of the lottery as a source of education revenue. The study surveyed California K-12 public school districts regarding their use of lottery revenues and attitudes towards the program.

This paper argues that the components of educa­tional provisions which satisfy private demands, mythology aside, almost invariably win out over the public goods components. If true, this leads, on the one hand, to a diminished supply of social benefits, and, on the other, to a stifling of social mobility. Insofar as these arguments are correct, they also may apply in most coun­tries of the world, whether capitalist or socialist.

Peninsula Academies are three-year high school programs designed for at-risk students, combining academic and technical training. Since 1981, they've been operating in California, and in 1985, ten new programs were created under state sponsorship. This report evaluates the quality of implementation and evidence of measurable impact on students after the first year. The report is based on site visits, questionnaire responses, and student data gathered from each high school. The Academy model is complex, but some sites didn't fully realize all components.

Before the 1970s, public school finance issues were mainly related to spending inequalities. However, since then, the focus has shifted towards financing education to improve its quality. This article suggests new research directions for school finance that address this policy interest, including topics related to state education reforms, traditional school finance issues, and education policy issues beyond current reforms.