Greg Abbott has plans to make Texas education first in the nation.
The first phase of his Educating Texas policy plan establishes the need for a strategic plan to encourage parents of eligible four-year-old children to enroll their children in state-based prekindergartens instead of the deficient Head Start programs.
The primary goal of any prekindergarten program is to ensure that children, particularly those identifies as “at-risk”, are “school-ready” by the time they enter kindergarten Evaluations of Head Start’s performance clearly shows that the program is not adequately meeting this goal, despite spending more that $8,000 per pupil. As Texas implements changes to improve public prekindergarten offerings across the state, a strategy should be put in place to encourage parents of children currently enrolled in Head Start to take advantage of the superior educational opportunities prekindergarten offers.
—Educating Texans, Phase 1
The steps outlines in Greg Abbott’s policy plan will ensure that state-based prekindergarten programs will achieve a level of quality that surpasses that of Head Start, making state-based programs the best option for Texas children.
