Nearly every public school elementary district in Wisconsin is now offering 4-year-old Kindergarten (4K) to all four-year-olds, according to preliminary data from the Department of Public Instruction. Nearly 50,000 children were enrolled in 4K in the 2013-14 school year. With five additional districts offering 4K in 2014-15, it is likely that more than 50,000 children will be in 4K. Only 22 of the 413 districts are not offering 4K.
The number of children in 4K has more than tripled since the 2002-03 school year, when 16,051 children attended 4K. In the 2013-14 school year, 49,839 children attended 4K, about 70% of Wisconsin’s four year olds.
Slightly more than half of four year olds attending 4K programs are in districts using the community approach model, collaborating with child care, Head Start, and other community-based early childhood programs.
Dave Edie
Early Care & Education: Supporting Wisconsin Families During Children’s Early Years
Regardless of race, place, or income, every child in Wisconsin deserves a strong start in life. This early foundation plays a critical role in life-long health and wellness. But systemic racism and poverty destabilizes families and communities and creates unhealthy conditions and barriers that harm children in their early development. This process of destabilization not only prevents children from having a strong start but can persist over the course of their lives.
