To improve access to high-quality early childhood education, California has made historic investments in Universal Prekindergarten (UPK), including the California State Preschool Program (CSPP). The state's UPK initiative elevates the importance of multilingualism and the early identification of disabilities in children. This report offers…

As California invests in early learning and care, the state is also moving forward with a long-overdue plan to build a statewide longitudinal data system (SLDS) -- known as the Cradle-to-Career (C2C) Data System -- which will eventually connect data over time and across sectors like education, health, human services, and the workforce. This is a…

California is at a crossroads. The state continues to battle a global pandemic, disproportionately affecting Black, Latinx, Asian, and Native American students. Meanwhile, communities of color are leading a movement to force the state's leaders to acknowledge the persistence of racism. However, rhetoric is not enough. On nearly every indicator,…

This is the technical document for the report, "Centering Quality, Centering Equity: Lessons Learned in Increasing Early Childhood Educator Credentials." The report explores Early Childhood Education (ECE) credential requirements in California (CA) and Washington, D.C. (D.C.) for two key reasons: 1) both recently raised these…

This narrative inquiry research study explored the experiences of three migrant families living in California. This research contributes new knowledge that will support Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) administrators, early childhood practitioners, elementary school principals, and kindergarten teachers in understanding transition events…

School discipline policies are broadly intended to foster a high-quality learning environment by maintaining safety in the classroom; however, far too often, schools adopt measures that harm a student's social, emotional, academic, and in some cases, physical health and well-being. To create physically safe and emotionally supportive environments…

In addition to the cross-cutting need to improve adequacy and equity in education investments, this policy agenda presents the current statewide priorities of The Education Trust-West, who continues to advocate for investments, policies, and practices through research, reports, events, and legislative efforts while engaging with educators,…

Thriving communities depend on a strong early childhood education (ECE) system--one where both young children and members of the workforce are served and supported. In recent years, state government leaders have increasingly focused on changing qualifications for specific ECE roles, as increasing credential requirements has sometimes been…

Despite the crucial role early educators play in young children's development, the field has always struggled with poor compensation and inadequate support (McLean et al., 2021). The persistent undervaluation of the ECE sector and the labor provided by the nearly all-female workforce can be traced back to its racist roots, when enslaved Black…

California is on the cusp of implementing universal preschool--a step that could help level the playing eld for young children. Over the next few years, all four-year-olds will become eligible for Transitional Kindergarten (TK), which has been part of the state's early learning programs since 2012. In the report, "Setting the Stage for…

This is the executive summary for the full report, "Centering Quality, Centering Equity: Lessons Learned in Increasing Early Childhood Educator Credentials." Thriving communities depend on a strong early childhood education (ECE) system--one where both young children and members of the workforce are served and supported. In recent years,…

States have recognized the impact of high-quality early childhood education (ECE) on a child's later college and career readiness and success in life. Yet disparities in program access, quality, and resource allocation continue to deprive many young children and their families of adequate support. By investigating and applying state boards'…

Whereas universal public access to early childhood education and care has long occupied a prominent place in feminist demands to end patriarchy, not only has such access gone largely unmet in most countries, save some noteworthy exceptions, but privatized childcare and early education has only gained momentum through neoliberalism, a process that…

As part of its effort to make universal prekindergarten (UPK) available to four-year-olds, California has recently expanded transitional kindergarten (TK) in its public schools. TK will be a full pre-K grade level in all districts by the 2025-26 school year. Other states that seek to broaden access to early care and education (ECE) can learn…

The potential of speech technology to improve educational outcomes has been a topic of great interest in recent years. For example, automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems could be employed to provide kindergarten-aged children with real-time feedback on their literacy and pronunciation as they practice reading aloud. Within these systems,…