A new study from the University of California, Berkeley, has found that pre-kindergarten enrollment has not yet recovered from the COVID pandemic, as preschool-aged children are shifting toward transitional kindergarten.
Transitional kindergarten programs, which offer state-reimbursed education for children, increased in popularity in the wake of the pandemic, the study found.
In California, transitional kindergarten enrollment increased from 75,000 in 2021 to 125,000 in 2023, per UC Berkeley’s data.
According to California First Five—a state-funded program that provides resources for children from birth to age 5—transitional kindergarten helps prepare preschool-aged kids with school readiness skills.
Transitional kindergarten, which serves children who will turn 5 between September and December of the school year, is usually a full-day program provided for free because it is part of the state’s public school system.
In a social media statement citing the study, UC Berkeley’s School of Education said there were as many as 28,000 empty slots for young preschool-aged children in June 2024 in Los Angeles County.
“Some 22,000 children, 3 and 4 years of age, disappeared from preschool, including from publicly financed and private centers,” the statement said, referring to a post-pandemic enrollment lag.
According to the report, statewide enrollment in Head Start, a federally financed program for children of low-income families, has not increased since 2020 and enrollment in California State Preschool Programs (CSPP) has only recovered slightly.
“Tepid enrollment growth in certain preschool programs may stem from interplay among these organizations and shifting family demand,” the report said, citing fluctuating enrollment between transitional kindergarten, private preschools, and state preschool programs.
Why have transitional kindergarten programs risen in enrollment while pre-kindergarten programs have fallen behind in Los Angeles County and statewide?
Portable vouchers, which the report says allow families to choose their preferred care center for their children, may be the most powerful factor in explaining why full-time working parents are choosing transitional kindergarten programs, which often offer all-day care for kids.
“The rising popularity of portable vouchers,” says the report, “reflects this option’s flexibility for parents working unconventional or unpredictable hours each week.”
The report found a 20 percent jump from 2021 to 2023 in the number of children 3 and 4 years of age whose daycare or preschool programs were covered by vouchers.
More than 48,000 children were enrolled in full-day transitional kindergarten programs in 2021, while just over 19,000 were enrolled in part-time programs, according to the report.
