Research Report

The State of Preschool Yearbook 2021

The State of Preschool 2021 annual report covers the 2020-2021 school year, the first school year fully impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic created difficulties such as health risks, closed classrooms, and remote preschool that disrupted already fragile systems. Enrollment declined by 18%, the first decrease in preschool enrollment in two decades. Preschool spending decreased too, but not as dramatically because many states protected preschool funding despite lower enrollments and preserved capacity for a rebound in enrollment. States also utilized federal funding, including pandemic relief funds to support preschool. Quality remains a concern as most states spend too little per child to provide a high quality program, and states relaxed standards during the pandemic.

Across the 44 states, DC, and Guam that funded a preschool program in 2020-2021, 29% of 4-year-olds and 5% of 3-year-olds were enrolled, a substantial decrease from pre-pandemic levels, erasing a decade of growth in preschool enrollment. Three state-funded preschool programs made changes to gain an additional benchmark for minimum quality standards (KS, UT, WA ECEAP). State funding for preschool fell by $254 million (adjusted for inflation) but spending from all sources increased. State preschool spending per child remains essentially the same as two decades ago, adjusting for inflation, below $6,000.

In the report, NIEER lays out policy recommendations for states and the federal government to expedite increased access to high-quality, full-day preschool.

Yearbook Contents

State Profiles

Alabama

Profile News Release

Alaska

Profile News Release

Arizona

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Arkansas

Profile News Release

California

Profile News Release

Colorado

Profile News Release

Connecticut

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Delaware

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District of Columbia

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Florida

Profile News Release

Georgia

Profile News Release

Hawaii

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Idaho

Profile News Release

Illinois

Profile News Release

Indiana

Profile News Release

Iowa

Profile News Release

Kansas

Profile News Release

Kentucky

Profile News Release

Louisiana

Profile News Release

Maine

Profile News Release

Maryland

Profile News Release

Massachusetts

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Michigan

Profile News Release

Minnesota

Profile News Release

Mississippi

Profile News Release

Missouri

Profile News Release

Montana

Profile News Release

Nebraska

Profile News Release

Nevada

Profile News Release

New Hampshire

Profile News Release

New Jersey

Profile News Release

New Mexico

Profile News Release

New York

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North Carolina

Profile News Release

North Dakota

Profile News Release

Ohio

Profile News Release

Oklahoma

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Oregon

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Pennsylvania

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Rhode Island

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South Carolina

Profile News Release

South Dakota

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Tennessee

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Texas

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Utah

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Vermont

Profile News Release

Virginia

Profile News Release

Washington

Profile News Release

West Virginia

Profile News Release

Wisconsin

Profile News Release

Wyoming

Profile News Release

Territory Profiles

American Samoa

Profile

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

Profile 

Guam

Profile News Release

Republic of Palau

Profile 

Puerto Rico

Profile 

Virgin Islands

Profile 

Non-Survey Data

The Authors

Allison Friedman-Krauss is an Assistant Research Professor at NIEER where she is also the Associate Director for Policy Research and Director of the Infant and Toddler Policy Research Center. 

W. Steven (Steve) Barnett is a Board of Governors Professor and the founder and Senior Co-Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. Dr. Barnett’s work primarily focuses on public policies regarding early childhood education, child care, and child development.

Karin Garver is an Early Childhood Education Policy Specialist at NIEER. Her research interests are in national and state early education policy trends, inclusive opportunities for preschool children with disabilities, data systems, systems integration, and public program finance.

Kate is an Early Childhood Education Policy Specialist at NIEER, where she primarily focuses on state and national policy analysis. Her current work includes collecting, analyzing, and disseminating data for the annual State of Preschool Yearbook report, providing technical assistance to New Jersey school districts and private providers applying for and implementing the state-funded preschool program, among other projects.

GG Weisenfeld is a Senior ECE Policy Specialist at the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University, Graduate School of Education. 

Beth Gardiner is an Early Childhood Education Technical Assistance Specialist at NIEER, working on various projects, with a primary focus on supporting New Jersey state preschool expansion and high-quality program implementation.

Suggested Citation

Friedman-Krauss, A. H., Barnett, W. S., Garver, K. A., Hodges, K. S., Weisenfeld, G., Gardiner, B. A., Jost, T. M. (2022). The State of Preschool 2021: State Preschool Yearbook. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research.