Full Citation
Title: Equitable Access to Universal Prekindergarten in Washington, DC
Citation Type: Miscellaneous
Publication Year: 2020
ISBN:
ISSN:
DOI:
NSFID:
PMCID:
PMID:
Abstract: To better understand patterns of prekindergarten applications and lottery outcomes, ideal analyses would draw on a rich set of background data on children and families and explore variation in participation and match rates across demographic and socioeconomic groups. But the DC prekindergarten lottery collects minimal background data because of its primary mission to support a streamlined and accessible application system. Instead, we use families' listed addresses, geocoded and linked to American Community Survey five-year microdata on community characteristics at the Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA) level, to proxy for the individual characteristics of prekindergarten applicants and matched and wait-listed applicants. Although this approach has limitations, it provides the best opportunity to learn about applicants and their families before school enrollment. Additional details on methods and limitations can be found in our report, Who Wins the Preschool Lottery? (Greenberg et al. 2020). Table 1 describes the characteristics of 3-year-olds in the District of Columbia, prekindergarten applicants, and matched and wait-listed applicants. Columns 2, 3, and 4 describe the average community characteristics of DC prekindergarten applicants, those matched by the lottery, and those wait-listed, respectively. Comparisons with column 1 show striking similarity: applicants and children matched to prekindergarten look nearly identical across all characteristics examined, differing from all young children by 3 percentage points, at most. Larger differences appear in comparing wait-listed applicants and the population as a whole. Communities of children wait-listed into public prekindergarten for 3-year-olds (PK3) contain, on average, lower shares of Black families and higher shares of Hispanic 1 and white families. Their communities have lower shares of families with one parent and higher shares of families with two or no parents. Wait-listed applicants come from communities with higher shares of families with at least one immigrant parent and lower shares of families speaking only English at home. Their communities are also more socioeconomically advantaged: they have higher shares of two-parent full-time working households, families with higher incomes, and families with four-year college degrees or more, along with lower shares of families receiving food stamps. Given that these comparisons rely on data from only five PUMAs, the number and magnitude of these differences is remarkable. Patterns look similar for public prekindergarten for 4-year-olds (PK4). These findings suggest that wait-listed applicants disproportionately come from socioeconomically advantaged communities. Findings also suggest disparities in lottery outcomes for immigrant families that warrant further consideration, especially as public preschool has been shown to improve access and school readiness for children of immigrants in other contexts (Greenberg, Michie, and Adams 2018; Greenberg, Rosenboom, and Adams 2019).
User Submitted?: No
Authors: Luetmer, Grace; Greenberg, Erica; Chien, Carina; Monarrez, Tomas
Publisher: Urban Instititute
Data Collections: IPUMS USA
Topics: Education, Race and Ethnicity, Work, Family, and Time
Countries: