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When state-funded Pre-K programs are enacted, often funds go primarily to public school programs, putting the school systems in competition with the existing mix of early childhood programs in communities. New Jersey has followed a different course. The state was mandated by the New Jersey Supreme Court to provide high quality preschool education for all 3- and 4-year olds in the state's poorest school districts. To accomplish this the state decided to use a combination of public schools and private child care centers.

Now research is showing that the effort, the Abbott Preschool Program, is paying dividends. Findings of a longitudinal study of the Abbott Program, reported in Preschool Matters (March 2008), included...

• Regardless of setting [public school or private child care] children who attended the program improved in language, literacy, and math skills through the end of the kindergarten year.
• Children who attended for two years at ages three and four significantly outperformed those who attended for only one year at age four.
• The gains in language and math from two years of Abbott attendance were quite large — nearly double for language and 70 percent larger for math.
• Adequate funding, high quality standards, and intensive professional development have resulted in good classroom quality across all Abbott programs, whether in private provider or school district settings.

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A new resource from Exchange, Program Administration Scale by Teri Talan and Paula Jorde Bloom, is an excellent field-tested tool for measuring early childhood leadership and management. Research consistently finds that high-quality administrative practices are crucial for ensuring beneficial results for children and families. This valuable tool incorporates data obtained through interview or self-report, document review, and observation to reliably measure the administrative practices of an early childhood program. Program Administration Scale includes 25 items clustered in 10 subscales, which measure both leadership and management functions of center-based early care and education programs.

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