West Virginia

Overview

During the 2021-2022 school year, West Virginia preschool enrolled 13,268 children, an increase of 1,287 from the prior year, as the program began to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. State spending totaled $80,436,415 and an additional $6,181,701 in TANF funds and $304,069 in federal recovery funds supported the program, down $31,103,846 (26%), adjusted for inflation since last year. State spending per child equaled $6,551 in 2021-2022, down $3,300 from 2020-2021, adjusted for inflation. Pre-k spending is calculated based on the previous year’s (2020-2021) enrollment which was lower due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in lower spending in 2021-2022. West Virginia met 9 of 10 quality standards benchmarks.

What's New

With decreased enrollment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, West Virginia continues to focus on increasing participation in the universal pre-K program and collaboration among the early childhood community to support families of young children even before entering pre-K. 

In December 2022, West Virginia was awarded a federal Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B–5) one-year planning grant for $2 million. The state plans to use this opportunity to enhance a coordinated system of early care and education by further strengthening connections of the collaborative pre-K program and programs serving children and families birth to pre-K, including enhanced transitions services.

Background

West Virginia introduced public preschool in 1983 for 3- and 4-year-olds through the Public School Early Childhood Education program. In 2002, legislation passed that required pre-K to be available to all 4-year-olds by 2012. Today, West Virginia’s Universal Pre-K System provides pre-K programs in all 55 counties in the state, serving 4-year-olds, as well as some 3-year-olds with special needs, and some kindergarten-eligible children if it is determined that kindergarten placement is not in the child’s best interest. 

Public schools receive West Virginia Universal Pre-K funding directly, with half of all programs required to partner with child care centers, private pre-K, or Head Start agencies to meet demand. During the 2021-2022 school year, the collaboration rate was 83%. Programs are permitted to use additional funding from IDEA and federal Head Start. 

As of July 2013, all new lead teachers in nonpublic settings are required to have at least a BA in ECE or a related field and, as of July 2014, all assistant teachers are required to apply for the Early Childhood Classroom Assistant Teacher Authorization, which requires a CDA or equivalent, as determined by the West Virginia Board of Education. West Virginia also increased instructional days per year and hours per week to at least 1,500 minutes (25 hours) of instruction per week and 48,000 minutes (800 hours) of instruction per year. Programs must operate no fewer than four days per week. 

The West Virginia Universal Pre-K program had undergone a multi-year study to assess the effects of program participation. Programs develop monitoring systems to offer ongoing continuous quality improvement, using reliable monitoring tools selected by a local collaborative team. Children are assessed three times per year using the Early Learning Scale, and this information is used to track child and program outcomes over time, guide teacher professional development and coaching, adjust instructional practices, and support school readiness.

West Virginia Universal Pre-K

Access

Total state pre-K enrollment	13,268
School districts that offer state program	100% (counties/parishes)
Income requirement	No income requirement
Minimum hours of operation	25 hours/week; 4 days/week
Operating schedule	School or academic year
Special education enrollment, ages 3 and 4	2,612
Federally funded Head Start enrollment, ages 3 and 4	6,702
State-funded Head Start enrollment, ages 3 and 4	0
Some Head Start children may also be counted in state pre-K. Estimates children in special education not also enrolled in state pre-K or Head Start.

Resources

Pre-K programs may receive additional funds from federal or local sources that are not included in this figure. K–12 expenditures include capital spending as well as current operating expenditures. Head Start per-child spending includes funding only for 3- and 4-year-olds.