Report Touts Advantages of Preschool

Los Angeles County would have about 3,300 fewer high school dropouts annually and nearly 10,000 fewer criminal cases filed against juveniles each year if publicly funded preschool were available in California, according to a new report from the Rand Corp.

Every other populous region of the state would see similar benefits, said the Rand study, which is being released today and would for the first time quantify the benefits of universal preschool.

“We can reduce the numbers of children who struggle, in and out of school, if we get smarter about offering them preschool,” Maryann O’Sullivan, founder of the nonprofit advocacy group Preschool California, said Wednesday during a teleconference announcing the report.

The data come amid growing talk in California about universal preschool. A ballot initiative, spearheaded by filmmaker Rob Reiner and backed by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, would tax high-income residents to pay for such a program and is expected to come before voters in June. More than 1 million signatures have been gathered for the initiative, and it is waiting to be validated by elections officials.

The new research follows another Rand analysis, released in March, concluding that every $1 spent on preschool would generate $2.62 in economic benefits, including reduced juvenile crime, diminished need for special education and fewer students being forced to repeat a grade.

Both studies presume a 70% enrollment rate by the state’s 550,000 4-year-olds in a publicly funded, voluntary program.

The figures being released today show Los Angeles County, the state’s most populous, would have 3,245 fewer high school dropouts each year, an 11% reduction, and 9,560 fewer criminal cases filed against minors, a 26% drop.

Researchers also projected sizable reductions in both categories for seven other regions covering 96% of the state’s population, including the Bay Area, the Central Valley and Southern California.

In Orange County, the number of dropouts would decrease by 21% and juvenile court cases by 18%. The projected decreases for the Inland Empire are 16% and 21%, respectively.

Statewide, the estimated average decreases are 14% for dropouts and 19% for juvenile court cases.

The study projected corresponding reduced needs to hold children back a grade and to enroll them in special education, said Lynn Karoly, senior economist for the Rand Corp. The nonpartisan Santa Monica-based think tank studies policy issues affecting the public and private sectors.

“Each of these improvements are associated with significant dollar benefits,” she said.

Each year of special education that is avoided saves California taxpayers $8,421, according to the report.

Preschool boosts scholastic careers and cuts teenage crime by ingraining fundamental skills at an early age, O’Sullivan said, such as teaching youngsters how to play with peers and to listen to their teachers. They get a running start on “basic skills like knowing the difference between large and small or holding a book the right way up,” she said.

On Wednesday, state schools Supt. Jack O’Connell and other officials joined O’Sullivan in backing the concept of universal preschool, which would cost an estimated $2 billion.

“For me, the message is clear. Preschool is a powerful tool for crime prevention,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca.

“This is a critical issue for business,” added Rusty Hammer, president of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. “The future of California’s workforce depends on our ability to have an educated workforce.”

Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn., said “the jury is still out” on universal preschool. “Certainly it is something that needs more study before we impose a massive new tax.”