Chandler Unified outlines preschool, pre‑K expansion as funding gaps persist

Chandler Unified District staff presented a multi‑year plan to expand preschool and pre‑kindergarten offerings and described limits created by uneven federal and state funding, saying the district currently serves roughly 1,000 preschool‑age students while demographers count about 16,000 children ages 0–4 in the district boundaries.

At a study session, Dr. Fletcher, a Chandler Unified staff member, summarized the scope of the district’s early childhood work and said, “When we speak about early childhood programming, we are referencing our preschools and our pre k's. So students ages 3 and 4 when they begin with us.” District presenters stressed that early learning access remains well below need at state and national levels.

District staff said the national context shows limited access to early childhood programming: presenters cited U.S. Census and Education Week data indicating only about 18 percent of children ages 0–4 nationally have access to early childhood programs and that enrollment and funding vary widely by state. In Arizona, staff said roughly 32 percent of the youngest learners participate in “high quality” early learning settings, a rate that rose about 11 percentage points in two years but was tied in part to temporary federal ESSER funding.

CUSD history, programs and funding

Presenters gave a timeline of local program development dating to the 1990s and described a mix of tuition‑based community education classrooms, Title I full‑day classrooms, Head Start slots and district‑funded special education placements. Dr. Marshall described a shift since about 2012 from themed tuition programs toward an intentional districtwide early childhood system. Dr. Marshall said the district will have “approximately 47 preschool, pre kindergarten classrooms” starting in 2025–26, and that the district’s preschool and pre‑K classrooms are being licensed to state requirements.

Staff explained the district uses braided funding — a mix of tuition, First Things First/Quality First scholarship dollars, Title I funding and federally mandated special education funds — and that the braided approach covers shared costs such as furniture, curriculum and professional development. Dr. Marshall summarized the funding mix: “Whether it's special education funded, title funding, first things first, and or tuition. We all share in the costs because we all know that there are students that are accessing the program.”

Assessment, staffing and program models

The district said it has moved from the Teaching Strategies GOLD portfolio to an internally developed early childhood outcome survey and curriculum‑based measures intended to link preschool assessment to later K–12 data. Dr. Marshall said the outcome survey covers seven rating areas and that last year was the first full pilot year for entry and exit measures.

Staff described staffing and program differences: classrooms have certified teachers with paraprofessionals as needed; student‑to‑staff ratios follow Arizona Department of Health Services licensing rules for licensed preschool programs; some special education placements attend half‑day when required by an IEP while Title I seats provide full‑day options. District staff said CUSD consistently has served almost 1,000 early learners over the past five years and reported an in‑meeting headcount of 941 students.

Access, retention and outreach

Presenters said about 72 percent of the district’s 4‑year‑old pre‑K students matriculate into CUSD kindergarten, a retention metric staff hope to raise. The district also described outreach and partnership efforts: representatives from community childcare programs (Little Explorers), Head Start and local nonprofits have been included in planning and an internal EQUIP stakeholder process.

Board questions and next steps

Board members asked about long‑term enrollment projections, barriers to participation and the role of competing private providers and cost. Staff cited competition, parental choice and the higher cost of certified teacher salaries as constraints and said some private providers and nonprofit partners (for example, Ascend and Little Explorers) are being used to increase community access. Dr. Fletcher told the board staff will continue to track student outcomes and expected to provide further linkage between preschool outcomes and K–2 academic measures in the coming year: “we will have more for you in the next year or so.”

No formal actions or votes were taken during the study session; the presentation concluded with board Q&A and staff follow‑up commitments.