Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Early childhood education has become a staple of education and social policy agendas. It rose to prominence among state and local governments over the last two decades and has become a major focus of data and measurement efforts as programs expand.

While children of immigrants grow as a share of all children in the country, their enrollment in preschool programs continues to lag far behind that of other children (Hanson, Adams, and Koball, 2016; Karoly and Gonzalez 2011). Early research on immigrant under-enrollment attributed lower participation in preschool to preferences for familial care. However, more recent work has shown that immigrant parents desire early education for their children to the same extent as US-born parents with similar levels of education and income but are simply less able to access such programs (Huston, Chang, and Gennetian 2002; Zucker, Howes, and Garza-Mourino 2007).

Barriers to preschool access are important because children of immigrants are disproportionately likely to have parents with low educational attainment and to grow up in linguistically isolated families, leading some to enter the school system at an academic disadvantage (Fortuny, Hernandez, and Chaudry 2010; Crosnoe and Turley 2011). At the same time, children of immigrants may benefit from early childhood education even more than other children (Crosnoe 2007; Loeb et al., 2007; Magnuson, Lahaie, and Waldfogel 2006).

This study aims to strengthen the knowledge base about effective strategies to support preschool participation of immigrant families by hearing from local experts and parents, themselves. We focus on four communities nationwide that have high rates of preschool enrollment among low-income immigrant families (documented in American Community Survey data) and have undertaken innovative strategies to support preschool participation: Dearborn, Michigan; Atlanta, Georgia; King County, Washington; and Houston, Texas. In each site, we focus on state pre-kindergarten programs, which have been of particular policy interest in recent years and may have fewer resources than other preschool programs (e.g., Head Start) to use in family engagement.

Held between November, 2016 and February, 2017, semi-structured qualitative interviews yield a rich set of data on parent and stakeholder perspectives. Within each study site, we gain insights from eight to ten stakeholders (including school district administrators, school leaders, immigrant-serving organizations, and others) and conduct four small group interviews with parents to explore promising outreach and enrollment strategies, how these strategies are working for families, and what kinds of challenges and opportunities remain. We analyze interview data using an iterative coding scheme and NVivo software to extract key themes across sites.

This study provides new evidence from four communities at the leading edge of preschool expansion efforts focused on equitable access for children from low-income immigrant families. Findings inform policymakers and practitioners seeking to overcome existing barriers and increase immigrant enrollment in preschool within a changing immigration enforcement context. Results also advance research on early childhood education, including understandings of selection into available programs, ease of eligibility and enrollment procedures, logistical considerations (including program locations, schedules, and cost), and whether programs are welcoming and responsive to families’ needs.