In 2004, the State of Florida imposed the Voluntary Prekindergarten Program (VPK). This legislation provides free prekindergarten services to all four-year-old children in the State of Florida (Agency for Workforce Innovation [AWI], 2005a). The legislation outlines the requirements of the VPK schools. This outline addresses specifications for teacher qualification to ensure quality prekindergarten experiences for young children (AWI, 2005a; Florida Statutes, 2008). The Florida VPK legislation has established the requirement of Bachelor's degrees (BA) for all VPK teachers by the 2013-2014 school year to assure high quality education in VPK programs. The specific problem of this study is the lack of research correlating higher teacher degrees in the Florida VPK programs to increased kindergarten readiness rates. A quantitative method study with a correlational research design addresses VPK readiness rates of kindergarten children in relation to the educational level of the VPK teachers of the 2007-2008 school year in South Eastern Florida. The analysis of the results of the study shows that the influence of teacher's credentials to increased kindergarten readiness rates is not statistically significant. Expanding the research concerning teacher qualifications and the correlation to children's readiness for school can provide legislators with information to make informed decisions concerning the Florida VPK program. Additionally, this information can possibly influence other prekindergarten programs throughout the United States when developing prekindergarten professional development requirements. The universal prekindergarten movement is new in the United States. The discrepancies between higher teacher degrees or specialized training needs to be researched future to determine if it is necessary to obtain a BA in early childhood education or a related field to prepare young children for kindergarten. Additionally, in light of this current research legislators should explore if it is necessary to require a BA degree for Voluntary Prekindergarten teachers. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]