State-sponsored preschool programs grew by 44,000 children in 2024-25, reaching almost 1.8 million seats nationally—a record high, a new report finds.
But most of that growth was concentrated in five states—California, Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, and Missouri—which added 52,000 new seats, while 20 states enrolled fewer students than the previous year.
As many states’ preschool programs continue to lag behind pre-pandemic enrollment levels, they must expand access without sacrificing program quality to do so, concludes the annual State of Preschool report, released Wednesday by the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University.
“It’s not enough just to reach the enrollment finish line without concern for quality,” said Allison Friedman-Krauss, an associate research professor at NIEER and the lead author of the report.
The analysis found record enrollment, funding, and quality in state preschool programs. It rates those programs using 10 quality benchmarks relating to factors like training for teachers and assistant teachers, professional development, class sizes, and systems for continuous improvement.
This year, Georgia’s preschool program for 4-year-olds became the sixth state program and the first universal option, which offers free education to all age-eligible children, to meet all 10 benchmarks after it lowered class sizes from 22 to 20 and improved teacher-to-child ratios from 1:11 to 1:10. It joined programs in Alabama, Hawaii, Michigan, Mississippi, and Rhode Island, which do not offer every child a seat.
“We call the funding we put toward pre-k an investment because the benefits don’t just show up immediately, we see them for literally generations afterward,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a livestreamed announcement from the state’s capitol Wednesday.
The findings come as states emphasize child care and early-childhood education as important strategies to meet children’s developmental needs early and support families. At least 26 governors mentioned early-childhood education and child care in their state of the state addresses this year, found a March analysis by the Education Commission of the States.
Nationally, 9% of 3-year-olds and 37% of 4-year-olds who attend preschool are in state-supported programs, NIEER found. Improving and sustaining quality in those programs will ensure that more children are prepared for K-12 education, the report said.
“If providing high-quality preschool education to all 3- and 4-year-olds were a race, some states are nearing the finish line, others have stumbled and fallen behind, and a few have yet to leave the starting line,” the report said.
While a record number of states met all 10 of NIEER’s quality benchmarks, 20 states met five or fewer, the organization found. Seventeen states spent less on preschool in 2024-2025 than they did in 2023-2024, when adjusted for inflation.
NIEER’s 10 quality benchmarks are:
- Comprehensive, aligned, and culturally sensitive learning standards
- Use of a curricula approval process and supports
- Requiring bachelor’s degrees with a specialization in pre-k for teachers
- Requiring a child development associate certificate for assistant teachers
- At least 15 hours of professional development per year
- A maximum class size of 20 students
- A 1:10 child-to-staff ratio
- Regular vision, hearing, and health screenings
- A continuous improvement plan that relies on data and classroom observations
