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Louisiana Department of Education outlines early childhood enrollment, wait list and quality gains
Summary
LDOE officials told the House Education Committee that more than 60,000 children are enrolled in publicly funded early childhood programs, the CCAP wait list exceeds 7,000 certified children, and over 95% of early learning sites earned a performance profile rating of proficient or higher in 2023–24.
Department of Education assistant superintendent Melinda and deputy assistant superintendent Karen Powell told the House Education Committee on Dec. 12 that Louisiana serves more than 60,000 children in publicly funded early childhood programs and that program types and funding sources vary by age and eligibility.
Melinda said the department oversees licensing, programmatic accountability and a range of publicly funded seats, including the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) and the LA 4 pre‑K program. She summarized funding pools, eligibility and program differences and highlighted that the department requests parish-by-parish capacity data to inform allocations. The presentation noted that this year’s reported requested budgets would allocate roughly $15.7 million to instructional programs and $3.6 million to early childhood seats from the EAF portion reported to committee members.
On service gaps and demand, Melinda reported that CCAP has a wait list of “more than 7,000 children” who are certified for the list, and she showed parish-level variation in access for 3‑ and 4‑year‑olds. Committee members pressed the department about special-population funding; Karen Powell said the $7,000,000 referenced for special programs largely reflects IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) funds and that the department coordinates with the Louisiana Department of Health and Early Steps for birth-to-3 identification and services.
On quality, the department released 2023–24 performance profiles for more than 1,800 early learning sites; staff reported that more than 95% of sites earned a rating of proficient or higher in that cycle, an increase from 68% in 2016. The department said it has established a goal of increasing representation in the highest performance categories by five percentage points.
Members asked about recruiting and retaining early childhood teachers, the effect of uncertain Attorney General (AG)‑funded allocations for four‑year‑old seats, and how professional development and community partnerships might support language and literacy for infants and children whose families speak languages other than English at home. LDOE staff described ongoing stakeholder convenings, teacher professional development options (virtual and in‑person), and partnerships with community resource and referral centers.
Next steps: LDOE will provide additional materials and continues to monitor funding needs and seat allocations; committee members indicated interest in tracking the fate of AG funds and proposals to backfill potential gaps.
