Indiana and communities work to overcome barriers to pre-K enrollment

In its first full year, Indiana’s pre-kindergarten program in 20 counties didn’t reach as many children as officials had hoped, leaving dollars unspent.

But it wasn’t for lack of the low-income kids that On My Way Pre-K aimed to reach, paying all or much of their tuition. Local organizers — where the program is found in St. Joseph, Elkhart, Marshall and Kosciusko counties — point to bureaucratic barriers that made it hard on parents to apply or qualify, along with a lack of qualified preschools.

Now, as enrollment has begun for next year, the state and even the city of South Bend are awarding grants to grow the number of pre-K providers, which now number 677 across the 20 counties. And state legislators have crafted a bill that would remove barriers for grandparents and retirees who raise kids.

Out of about 7,000 applications, 3,000 children enrolled. The biggest reasons kids failed to qualify were that they weren’t the right age or their parents’ income was too high, said Marni Lemons, spokeswoman for the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration.

Out of $22 million in this school year’s budget, she said, $9 million wasn’t used. In response, Gov. Eric Holcomb has set a goal of enrolling at least 500 more kids for the coming year. His “Next Level” agenda calls for expanding On My Way Pre-K in 2021.

Marshall County is a prime example of rural areas that don’t have enough preschools that qualify. In Bremen alone, four families wanted to enroll in the pre-K program last year but couldn’t find any eligible providers, said Linda Yoder, director of the United Way of Marshall County.

The state requires that preschools must be accredited or reach Level 3 in Indiana’s Paths to Quality rating, where Level 4 is the highest.

In total, Yoder said, Marshall County aimed for 50 children in the 2018-19 school year, but enrolled just eight.

To correct that and expand the number of eligible providers, she said, the state awarded almost $400,000 in early-childhood grants to three private child care providers in the county and to the Argos, Triton, Bremen and Culver public school districts.

Among them, Bremen Elementary School is receiving $66,000 for the startup costs of a preschool opening in August and $100,000 to remodel the classroom space, said Lori Hundt, director of special services for Bremen Public Schools. The district already has two Head Start preschools with waiting lists.

The Bremen district has hired two bilingual staff and will try to bus most preschool kids, aiming to reach Hispanic residents who, since they’re working, have trouble bringing their kids to preschool.

Yoder welcomes “anything we can do to remove barriers.”

The county now has six preschools that qualify for On My Way Pre-K and expects to add five more by the end of 2019, she said. It also anticipates adding 75 more seats for eligible children in that time.

St. Joseph County enrolled 150 kids out of its goal of 200, but Emily Rupchock is optimistic about meeting that mark in the coming school year. She directs the Ready to Grow St. Joe early childhood coalition.

Early this month, the city of South Bend announced that it’s giving $100,000, matched by $40,000 from the nonprofit Family & Children’s Center Foundation, for a grant to help preschools in the city to upgrade their care. The goal, Rupchock said, is that the programs reach level 3 or 4 quality and, as a result, qualify for On My Way Pre-K.

Grants of up to $15,000 will help to pay for materials, space improvements, curriculum and other supports. The money is being managed by the United Way of St. Joseph County.

About 40 pre-K providers had signed up for On My Way Pre-K in the county, so it didn’t see a great lack, but, since they range in size from homes to large centers, Rupchock said, there may not be enough open seats that are near every family.

The state program had started in 2015 as a pilot project in five counties. As it expanded to 20 counties, Lemons said that pre-K advocates in each county set their own goals, many of which were ambitious for the first full year, adding, “They were pushing themselves.”

But Rupchock said that well more than 200 families tried to apply in St. Joseph County but struggled to get through the application process. She said parents found it hard to make it to appointments to apply because they were too busy or lacked transportation.

She and Lemons both said gains were made when enrollment workers started texting parents with reminders, rather than calling. Now, Lemons said, the state is also trying to enroll families in other FSSA benefits and programs while they have parents’ paperwork on file. Next year, she said, the agency hopes to offer “virtual enrollment” to cut down on physical appointments.

Trying to change requirement

Sen. Eddie Melton, D-Gary, introduced Senate Bill 338 in this year’s session to enable grandparents, retirees and others on disability to enroll kids who are in their care. He’d heard from constituents that they couldn’t enroll because of a requirement that a child’s guardians must be working or attending school or training — even though it doesn’t have to be full time.

The requirement comes from a federal funding source: the Child Care and Development Fund. Last year, the state made it easier for parents to fulfill that by allowing them to enroll in an English-as-a-second-language class, for example, or a GED program or job training.

Still, Melton said, “We were missing a population.”

His bill didn’t advance in the Senate, but he got fellow legislators to insert the same provision into a House bill, permitting parents or guardians to qualify if they receive Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income benefits. House Bill 1628 has passed both the House and Senate and now, with amendments, has returned to the House for final approval.

House Bill 1628’s main thrust is to expand the pre-K program so that eligible preschools in all 92 counties could participate. Melton endorses the expansion but laments that the bill doesn’t provide any extra funding.

One amendment would require an annual report on the pre-K program spending that legislators had approved — an effort, Melton said, so that “no dollars are left behind.”

To apply

• On My Way Pre-K: Children must be 4 years old by Aug. 1 and live in one of 20 counties, including St. Joseph, Elkhart, Marshall and Kosciusko. Families must have an income below 127 percent of the federal poverty level. For applications in English or Spanish, visit OnMyWayPreK.org. To find pre-K providers that qualify, visit ChildCareFinder.IN.gov or call 800-299-1627.

• South Bend grants: Home-, center- and faith-based providers in South Bend can apply for grants to upgrade their pre-K programs until May 15 at uwsjc.org or 574-232-8201, ext. 223.