Early Learning and Care Division
Subject: Elimination of Prekindergarten and Family Literacy Program Requirements
Number: 12-16
Date: August 2012
Expires: Until Rescinded
Authority: Chapter 38, Statutes of 2012 (Senate Bill 1016)
Attention: All Executive Officers and Program Directors of California State Preschool Programs
Purpose
The purpose of the Management Bulletin is to inform California State Preschool Program (CSPP) contractors who were receiving funding to operate a Prekindergarten and Family Literacy (PKFL) program of changes to the program requirements.
Authority
Chapter 38, Statutes of 2012, (Senate Bill (SB) 1016) repealed California Education Code (EC) sections 8238.1, 8238.2, 8238.3, 8238.5, and 8238.6 to eliminate the program requirements unique to CSPP programs receiving PKFL funding. It also amended EC Section 8238.4 to eliminate funding for PKFL and instead, provide funding for Family Literacy Supplemental grants. Finally, it amended EC Section 8238 to describe the new program requirements for CSPP programs receiving Family Literacy Supplemental grants, which are available to CSPP classrooms operating within the attendance areas of elementary schools with base Academic Performance Index (API) scores that fall within deciles one through three.
Background
In 2007, Chapter 211, Statutes of 2007 (Assembly Bill (AB) 172), provided $45,000,000 for child care and development services to PKFL programs located within the attendance areas of elementary schools with 2005 base API scores that fell within deciles one through three. AB 172 also appropriated $5,000,000 to provide Prekindergarten and Family Literacy Support (CPKS) grants of up to $2,500 per year per PKFL classroom.
The PKFL program provided services to four-year-old children the year before they started kindergarten, allowed for a one-time need and eligibility determination, and allowed up to 20 percent of the children receiving part-day services to be enrolled without regard to family income when slots could not be filled by otherwise eligible families.
In 2008, Chapter 308, Statutes of 2008 (AB 2759), created the CSPP by consolidating funding from five contract types, including PKFL, to provide center-based child care and development services for eligible three-and four-year-old children.
The CSPP programs provided services to three- and four-year-old children, allowed children who received full-time services to remain in part-day, regardless of their families’ continued eligibility, and allowed up to 10 percent of the children receiving part-day services to be from families whose income exceeds the income eligibility threshold by not more than 15 percent when slots could not be filled by otherwise eligible families.
CSPP contractors receiving PKFL funding under the provision of AB 172 were given the option to continue to provide services under the PKFL program requirements, or to follow the new CSPP program requirements. Contractors continued to be required to operate in the attendance areas of elementary schools with 2005 base API scores that fall within deciles one through three to continue to receive CPKS contract funding.
Policy
Effective July 1, 2012, all CSPP contractors, including those that previously received PKFL funding, must adhere to the CSPP program requirements.
CSPP contractors who previously received PKFL funding should note the following differences:
- Contractors
previously serving only four-year-old children must now serve both CSPP eligible three- and four-year-old children. Contractors must follow the enrollment priorities described in EC Section 8236 when enrolling families.
- Families
receiving full-day services must maintain a need for child care services as described in EC Section 8263(a)(2). Families must report changes to family circumstances as described in California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 18102. Families that lose their need for services may continue to receive part-day services for the remainder of the program year.
- Pursuant to EC Section 8237, once enrolled, a family will remain eligible for part-day services regardless of changes to eligibility as described in EC Section 8263(a)(1). Families will be subject to family fees in accordance with EC Section 8239(e) (See MB 12-06 for detailed information).
- Contractors are limited to the over-income exception for part-day services as described in EC Section 8235(c). After enrolling all CSPP age-eligible children from families that meet eligibility criteria, contractors may enroll CSPP age-eligible children from families whose income exceeds the income eligibility threshold by no more than 15 percent. However, no more than 10 percent of the total CSPP contracted slots, as calculated through the program contract, may be filled with children in families above the income eligibility threshold.
Contractors that received a CPKS contracts last fiscal year will receive a Family Literacy Supplemental grant this fiscal year to provide family literacy services as described in EC Section 8238. Grant recipients must continue to operate their CSPP classrooms in the attendance areas of elementary schools with API scores that fall within deciles one through three as described in EC Section 8238.4. The amended Funding Terms and Conditions for the Family Literacy Supplemental grant contracts are in the processes of being updated for posting on the Early Learning and Care (ELCD) Web site.
If you have any questions regarding the information in this MB, please contact your assigned ELCD Field Services Consultant at http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/assignments.asp or by phone at 916-322-6233.
This Management Bulletin is mandatory only to the extent that it cites a specific statutory and/or regulatory requirement. Any portion of this Management Bulletin that is not supported by a specific statutory and/or regulatory requirement is not prescriptive pursuant to California Education Code Section 33308.5.