Last week, after two months of back-and-forth, House Bill 4 won its final passage in the Texas legislature. The bill, which provides state funding for public prekindergarten programs, is now ready to be signed into law. In its finalized form, House Bill 4 provides for $130 million in grantsRead More

In the State of the State address on February 17, Governor Greg Abbott identified five key issues which he intends to be the top legislative priorities in the immediate future. One of these issues was PreK funding. In his gubernatorial campaign, Abbott declared his support for state-funded PreK programs andRead More

President Obama’s State of the Union address last week has already received much media attention, and the policies discussed in it have drawn considerable commentary from both sides of the aisle. On the topic of education, most attention has been focused on the President’s ambitious plan to make community collegeRead More

Last week, it was announced that Texas would not be among the 18 states awarded a federal Preschool Development Grant for the expansion of Pre-K programming. The Houston Chronicle‘s Ericka Mellon has more. Pre-K has come to be a contentious issue within education policy; during the recent gubernatorial race, itRead More

Parents of toddlers and pre-kindergarten kids: do you let your kids watch TV? And what about using iPads? In the media-driven world of the 21st century, many children grow up with digital screens. These media are so ubiquitous – and, indeed, so useful for keeping children occupied – that itRead More

There are many unique stresses associated with being the parent of a toddler – from the terrible two’s to the first day at preschool and beyond. One such stress comes from watching your children’s first steps into education. Will they be adequately prepared by the time they get to kindergarten?Read More