Fostering Integration in Early Childhood Settings: Implications for Policy

Research shows that racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically integrated learning environments can lead to academic and social benefits for children. However, most early childhood education (ECE) programs are remarkably segregated. Segregation in ECE settings is driven by patterns of residential segregation, but it is also driven by policies that govern access to programs. For example, publicly funded preschool is often not universally accessible. Further, the current ECE system in most states is composed of a patchwork of programs, each of which has its own eligibility requirements and funding that make integration challenging.

This webinar illuminated the important, but often overlooked, problem of segregation in ECE settings. Speakers identified strategies that policymakers and administrators can use to foster integration, including establishing universal ECE programs, braiding public funding, allowing tuition-paying families to enroll in public programs, attracting families across neighborhoods or district boundaries, and creating two-way dual language immersion programs. Presenters described examples of cities and states putting these strategies into action.

This webinar was designed for federal, state and local policymakers, early childhood administrators, and others involved in building high-quality early learning systems.

Speakers:

• Miriam Calderón, Chief Policy Officer, Zero to Three
• Bernadine Futrell, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Equity and Discretionary Grants and Support Services, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education
• Martha Lee, Senior Director of Early Childhood, Educational Alliance at the Manny Cantor Center
• Shantel Meek, Founding Executive Director and Professor of Practice, Children’s Equity Project
• Sara Plasencia, Policy Advisor, Learning Policy Institute
• Casey Stockstill, Assistant Professor, Dartmouth College