SECTION 1. The purpose of this Act is to provide a much-needed early childhood education program for Hawaii's children prior to the State's constitutional responsibility for education from kindergarten through grade twelve, by establishing the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program, to be administered by the executive office on early learning. The program's purpose is to provide high-quality early childhood education through the public schools, including charter schools, in either of Hawaii's two official languages. The program will establish a solid foundation for children to enable them to graduate from high school and be prepared for college and a career.

Significant research affirms that the experiences and the environments in which children develop in their earliest years can have a lasting impact on their later success in school and life. When provided with the opportunity for high-quality early childhood education, children are more likely to succeed in kindergarten and beyond and grow into capable adults who contribute positively to the larger community. They are more likely to reach higher levels of educational attainment, earn higher salaries, and even be healthier.

High-quality early childhood education programs also generate significant returns on investment for society as a whole, so much so that some of the country's most respected economists are now touting early childhood education as an economic development strategy. The investments yield a return far exceeding the return on most public projects considered to spur economic development. Several of the most rigorous long-term studies done in this area determined returns to be between four and nine dollars for every dollar invested. The public sees returns in the form of reduced welfare, crime, and special education costs; reduced homelessness and substance abuse; and increased tax revenues from program participants later in life. This was validated for Hawaii in a 2008 study commissioned by the Good Beginnings Alliance, which found more than four dollars in return for every dollar invested in high-quality early childhood education for the State.

Of particular concern are the low-income children of Hawaii. Currently, one in six children lives in poverty in Hawaii, making children the poorest members of our society, according to data reported by the University of Hawaii center on the family in 2013. This number is alarming because an impoverished childhood leads to a greater risk of teen pregnancy, failure to graduate from high school, poor health, and lack of secure employment in later years.

The future is likely to be grim for this population of children, especially if left without the opportunity for early childhood education. Reading proficiency is the leading indicator of long-term academic and life success. High school dropout rates are heavily associated with the inability to read proficiently by the end of grade three, and the shortfall in reading proficiency is especially pronounced among low-income children. As stated in the 2010 national report Learning to Read by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, "[If] we don't get dramatically more children on track as proficient readers, the United States will lose a growing and essential proportion of its human capital to poverty, and the price will be paid not only by individual children and families, but by the entire country".

Lack of readiness for school directly undermines reading proficiency. If a child does not arrive at kindergarten ready to learn, the child will most likely struggle to keep up and then eventually lose the interest and motivation needed to learn. This achievement gap only widens with each subsequent year of schooling.

All children need high-quality, developmentally appropriate early childhood education programs to enable them to arrive at school ready to learn. Sadly, however, too many of our children are starting without being prepared for kindergarten. According to the Hawaii State School Readiness Assessment for the 2012-2013 school year, forty-three per cent of children in public school kindergarten had not attended a prekindergarten program. In addition, not all prekindergarten services are of high quality and close to seventy-five per cent of fourth graders are not reading proficiently, according to data reported by the University of Hawaii center on the family in 2013. The numbers are telling.

Early childhood education can help close the achievement gap between children of different socioeconomic backgrounds. The Academic Pediatric Association's Task Force on Childhood Poverty in 2013 identified providing high-quality early childhood programs and high-quality affordable child care to poor families as one of the key strategies to reducing poverty. Studies have proven that high-quality early childhood education programs are especially effective for children from low-income families as well as otherwise disadvantaged children. These programs are one of the strongest factors in school readiness for children from low-income families because of the potential to alter their lifetime trajectories for success.

It is important to note, however, that every child, regardless of the child's family income, can benefit from early childhood education. According to Learning to Read, three-quarters of children from families with moderate or high incomes are not ready for school at kindergarten entry. More than ninety per cent of kindergarten classrooms in the department of education reported that students did not meet benchmarks in all dimensions of school readiness, which include literacy, math, and school behaviors. Unfortunately, studies show that students who struggle early in school rarely catch up, and consequently they have less than a one-in-three chance of being ready for college or a career at the end of high school.

Teachers in Hawaii, including some at the middle-school level, are able to tell which students in their classrooms have gone to preschool. Early childhood education helps teachers because children will enter their classrooms better prepared and teachers will spend less time helping individual students to play catch up, which allows teachers to focus their time and energy on helping all of their students to master the knowledge and content needed to progress on-time.

Although it has been argued that the benefits of early learning disappear by the third grade, as reported by some studies of the federal Head Start program, reliable studies have found that gains made in life skills do not diminish over time. Graduates of Head Start, a program that promotes school readiness for children from low-income families, were less likely to repeat grades or be diagnosed with a learning disability and more likely to graduate from high school and attend college.

The executive office on early learning has been working toward a program that will provide access to high-quality early childhood education for all of Hawaii's children. The United States Census Bureau estimates there are more than seventeen thousand four-year-olds in Hawaii each year, who come from families of varying incomes. Although low-income families require the most assistance, many moderate-income families, especially those who are just entering the middle class, also struggle to meet the cost of early learning on their own. Hawaii ranks twenty-seventh among the least affordable states for center-based programs for a four-year-old. In 2012, the average annual cost of a full-time center-based program for a four-year-old in Hawaii was $8,172, which is more than nine per cent of the state median income for a married couple.

Through the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program established by this Act, the State will be able to:

(1) Build capacity to serve children in the year prior to being eligible to attend kindergarten; and

(2) Institute a high level of quality that is linked to children's educational outcomes, which research emphasizes is necessary to produce significant outcomes for children both in the near- and long-terms.

Act 122, Session Laws of Hawaii 2014, included $3,000,000 in the state budget for prekindergarten programs in fiscal year 2015, marking the first time state funds were invested in prekindergarten in Hawaii. These funds provided for the launch of the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program. The executive office on early learning prekindergarten program launched successfully in eighteen public elementary schools statewide in the 2014-2015 school year, benefitting more than four hundred four-year-old children. The program institutes high-quality early childhood education standards, and each classroom is staffed by a department of education teacher and educational assistant who benefit from continual professional development opportunities, including coaching and mentoring support provided by resource teachers with master's degrees, as well as extensive knowledge in early childhood education. This Act provides statutory authority for the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program.

There have also been several experimental public prekindergarten programs funded through the Race to the Top grant. Other existing school-based programs consist of special education programs staffed by department of education special education teachers and those participating in the pre-plus program, a public-private partnership through which seventeen preschool facilities have been developed and built on public elementary school campuses and private, department of human services-licensed preschool providers contracted to operate them.

The executive office on early learning prekindergarten program requires the use of high-quality standards that are linked to children's educational outcomes. Research has shown that there are certain components that are associated with an early childhood education program's ability to produce positive child outcomes. Although the early childhood field lacks consensus on a single approach for categorizing factors that define program quality, there are two broad dimensions commonly associated with promoting higher rates of learning and development in children: structural aspects, such as physical environment, child-caregiver ratios, group size, caregiver qualifications, and caregiver compensation; and the quality of curriculum and intentional teaching. Recent research has shown that the latter category has a more significant impact on children's outcomes and is the basis for the high-quality standards that are required by this program, which are positive teacher-child interactions, individual child formative assessments, and family engagement.

There is substantial evidence that children who attend early childhood education programs are significantly affected by their interactions with teachers. Recent studies, such as Features of Pre-Kindergarten Programs, Classrooms, and Teachers: Do They Predict Observed Classroom Quality and Child-Teacher Interactions?, authored by Robert Pianta, Carollee Howes, Margaret Burchinal, Donna Bryant, Richard Clifford, Diane Early, and Oscar Barbarin, have found that of the five quality indicators most often used in program evaluation systems, teacher-child interactions were the strongest predictor of children's learning.

Another key indicator linked to children's outcomes is the use of a curriculum that is based on child development. The degree to which it is implemented fully is dependent on the use of an ongoing, authentic child assessment that is used to individualize and is both intellectually rich and broad enough to meet children's social and emotional development needs. These are known as formative assessments.

Research has also demonstrated that high-quality programs involve families who communicate on an ongoing basis. Through various family engagement strategies, high-quality programs can better engage families in their children's learning, especially in acquiring the skills associated with kindergarten readiness.

The legislature notes that a state-funded early childhood education program continues decades of work by the legislature to advance early learning.

In 1989, state funding was approved for the preschool open doors program to help families pay for child care at participating preschools using a sliding fee scale based on ability to pay. Components included child development workshops and staff development for the preschools.

In 1991, the board of regents of the University of Hawaii created the University of Hawaii center on the family in response to Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 82, regular session of 1989, to enhance the well-being of Hawaii's families through interdisciplinary research, education, and community outreach. Early childhood was one of the focal areas.

In 1997, the legislature enacted Act 77, Session Laws of Hawaii 1997, which:

(1) Recognized a public-private partnership between the State and the Good Beginnings Alliance, a private nonprofit corporation created as a focal point for policy development and dedicated to enhancing, developing, and coordinating quality early childhood education and care services;

(2) Tasked the Good Beginnings Alliance with overseeing at least four community councils in each county to develop plans to provide services to children and families and possible local funding sources; and

(3) Established an interdepartmental council to assist with the work.

In 1998, the legislature adopted House Concurrent Resolution No. 38, regular session of 1998, which established in state policy the goal that "all of Hawaii's children will be safe, healthy and ready to succeed".

In 2002, the legislature enacted Act 177, Session Laws of Hawaii 2002, which appropriated capital improvement funds to build preschools on elementary school campuses throughout the State. The lieutenant governor's office assumed planning oversight for the pre-plus program until oversight was transferred to the department of human services and subsequently to the executive office on early learning.

In Act 13, Session Laws of Hawaii 2002, the legislature led the nation by statutorily defining "school readiness", which acknowledged the joint responsibility of families, schools, and communities in preparing children for lifelong learning.

In 2004, the legislature enacted Act 219, Session Laws of Hawaii 2004, which established an unfunded, two-tiered junior kindergarten and kindergarten program in the department of education beginning with the 2006-2007 school year.

In 2005, the legislature enacted Act 151, Session Laws of Hawaii 2005, which created the early childhood education task force with the focus that "young children are ready to have successful learning experiences when there is a positive interaction among the child's developmental characteristics, school practices, and family and community support".

In 2006, the legislature enacted Act 259, Session Laws of Hawaii 2006, which established the early learning educational task force to develop a five-year plan for a comprehensive and sustainable early learning system. The plan, completed prior to the regular session of 2008, included detailed costs for the establishment and operation of an early learning system in Hawaii that would include children from birth to age five. It also included, as requested by the legislature, an implementation and financing schedule that begins with services to four-year-old children and proceeds to younger age groups; mechanisms to ensure cross-sector and interdepartmental collaboration; measures to ensure the continuing professional development of teachers and administrators; and provisions for the promotion of the importance of early learning to families, policymakers, and the general public.

In 2008, the legislature enacted Act 14, Special Session Laws of Hawaii 2008, which established the State's early learning system, known as keiki first steps. The legislature recognized that a preschool setting might be a more appropriate placement than junior kindergarten. That Act:

(1) Established the early learning council, which was attached to the department of education for administrative purposes only, to develop and administer the early learning system to benefit all children throughout the State, from birth until the time they enter kindergarten;

(2) Established the keiki first steps grant program;

(3) Established the pre-plus program within the department of human services and designated the department of human services and department of education to work collaboratively to develop suitable pre-plus classrooms on department of education campuses statewide, including conversion charter school campuses; and

(4) Promoted the development of early learning facilities.

In 2009, the legislature enacted Act 194, Session Laws of Hawaii 2009, which:

(1) Required the department of education, beginning with the 2010-2011 school year, to use successful assessment tools and protocols for determining a student's initial placement and for decision-making about a student's movement between junior kindergarten, kindergarten, and into grade one; and

(2) Required the early learning council to develop a plan to ensure the needs of junior kindergarteners are addressed.

In 2010, the legislature enacted Act 183, Session Laws of Hawaii 2010, which:

(1) Amended the public school kindergarten entry age beginning with the 2013-2014 school year, so that children must be at least five years old on the first day of instruction; and

(2) Required the department of education and early learning council to develop a plan to assess the success of junior kindergarten programs at individual schools that would also address providing educational opportunities for those who would have been eligible to attend kindergarten prior to the age change.

In 2012, the legislature enacted Act 178, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012, which:

(1) Established the executive office on early learning;

(2) Tasked the office with creating a comprehensive early childhood development and learning system for Hawaii's keiki, prenatal to age five;

(3) Established the early learning advisory board to replace the early learning council, as an advisory body to the office;

(4) Repealed the existing junior kindergarten program for four- and early five-year-olds at the end of the 2013-2014 school year;

(5) Required that beginning with the 2014-2015 school year, students must be at least five years old on July 31 of that school year to attend kindergarten; and

(6) Tasked the office with developing a plan to implement an early learning program in the 2014-2015 school year.

In 2013, the legislature passed Senate Bill No. 1084, Senate Draft 1, House Draft 1, Conference Draft 1, which proposed an amendment to the Hawaii State Constitution to permit the appropriation of public funds for private early childhood education programs and which passed with more than a two-thirds majority in each house. The purpose of the constitutional amendment was to include private early childhood education providers in a mixed-delivery system of public and private providers to provide access to early childhood education opportunities for more four-year-old children. Ratification of the amendment failed on November 4, 2014.

In 2014, the legislature enacted Act 122, Session Laws of Hawaii 2014, which included $3,000,000 in the state budget for prekindergarten programs in fiscal year 2015. These funds provided for public preschools on department of education elementary school campuses in the 2014-2015 school year through the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to fulfill the State's intent to provide a much-needed early childhood education program for Hawaii's children prior to the State's constitutional responsibility for education from kindergarten through grade twelve, by establishing the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program, which will be provided through public schools, including charter schools, and will implement the use of high-quality standards that are strongly linked to children's educational outcomes.

SECTION 2. Chapter 302L, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§302L- Public preschools; executive office on early learning prekindergarten program. (a) There is established within the early learning system an early childhood education program, known as the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program, to be administered by the office. The program shall:

(1) Be provided through public schools, including charter schools;

(2) Prepare children for school and active participation in society through either of the State's two official languages; and

(3) Provide access to high-quality early childhood education that addresses children's physical, cognitive, linguistic, social, and emotional development.

(b) The program shall serve children in the year prior to being eligible to attend kindergarten.

(c) Enrollment in the program shall be voluntary. A child who is enrolled in or eligible to attend a public elementary school, or who is required to attend school pursuant to section 302A-1132, shall not be eligible for enrollment in the program.

(d) The program shall incorporate high-quality standards, which shall be research-based, developmentally appropriate practices associated with better educational outcomes for children, such as:

(1) Positive teacher-child interactions;

(2) Use of individual child assessments that are used for ongoing instructional planning, based upon all areas of childhood development and learning, including cognitive, linguistic, social, and emotional approaches to learning, health, and physical development;

(3) Family engagement; and

(4) Alignment with the Hawaii early learning and development standards, which align with department of education standards, including common core state standards, state content and performance standards, and general learner outcomes for grades kindergarten to twelve, to facilitate a seamless and high-quality educational experience for children.

The office shall monitor implementation of the high-quality standards.

(e) The office shall provide support to incorporate high-quality standards, including support related to teacher-child interactions, individual child assessments, and family engagement.

(f) The office shall coordinate with other agencies and programs to facilitate comprehensive services for early childhood education.

(g) The office shall collect data to:

(1) Evaluate the services provided;

(2) Inform policy; and

(3) Make any improvements to the program.

(h) The department of education and any charter school existing pursuant to chapter 302D shall use available classrooms for public preschool classrooms statewide. Preschool classrooms established pursuant to this section shall be in addition to any pre-plus program established pursuant to section 302L-1.7.

(i) The office shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 necessary to carry out the purposes of this section, including compliance with all applicable state and federal laws."

SECTION 3. Section 302L-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding two new definitions to be appropriately inserted and to read as follows:

""Early childhood education" means a developmentally appropriate early childhood development and education program for children from birth until the time they enter kindergarten.

"Family engagement" means practices that engage families in recognition of the need for families to actively support their child's learning and development, including classrooms that make families feel welcome, communication with families on an ongoing basis, the promotion of responsible parenting, and involvement in decisions that affect the families and their children."

SECTION 4. The executive office on early learning shall report to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular sessions of 2016, 2017, and 2018 on the executive office on early learning prekindergarten program, including:

(1) The number of classrooms established and their locations;

(2) The number of children enrolled at each school;

(3) The number of applicants who were placed on a waitlist for the program and for which schools;

(4) A description of the basic elements of each classroom;

(5) A description of the high-quality standards incorporated in each classroom;

(6) The degree to which the program's standards as incorporated in each classroom meet the research-based National Institute for Early Education Research Quality Standards benchmarks;

(7) The cost of each classroom; and

(8) Plans and costs for program expansion in fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 2018.

SECTION 5. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	863
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII