Want to put $14,000 back into the pockets of families with little kids? Follow Michigan’s example and offer universal pre-kindergarten:
Michigan’s initiative to offer free pre-kindergarten for all is paying off, state educators said Wednesday, as the Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement and Potential, also known as MiLEAP, touted nearly 53,000 applications on file since June.
Emily Laidlaw, MiLEAP’s deputy director, said during a virtual news conference that the figure had grown by 700 applications in one month and by 16% compared with the same time last year, when applications totaled more than 45,000 children.
…Laidlaw added that with just one child enrolled in the program, families could save $14,000 a year on childcare costs. Those savings were crucial for families navigating high costs of living and a stagnating economy [Ben Solis, “Nearly 53,000 Apply for Michigan’s Free Pre-K Program as Enrollment Grows,” Michigan Advance, 2026.08.20].
Michigan’s Legislature allocated $730.4 million to universal pre-K this year. That’s less than 1% of Michigan’s $75.2-billion budget. Even Michigan Republicans celebrate this investment in education:
State Rep. Mark Tisdel today highlighted bipartisan investments in the new state education budget that strengthen early literacy, expand access to prekindergarten programs, and create more opportunities for students to earn college credit while still in high school.
The 2026-27 budget, signed by the governor this week, increases the per-pupil foundation allowance by $250 to $10,300 while making targeted investments that help students succeed from early childhood through graduation.
“Students learn best when we invest in them every step of the way,” Tisdel said. “This budget strengthens the foundation by helping children become strong readers, expanding access to high-quality pre-K and giving more students the opportunity to earn college credit before they graduate. Those are smart investments that will pay dividends for families and for Michigan.”
The budget includes a $73 million, or 10%, increase for universal prekindergarten, expanding access to high-quality early learning opportunities for Michigan families [Rep. Mark Tisdel (R-55/Rochester, MI), press release, Michigan House Republicans, 2026.07.23].
South Dakota remains one of just five states that doesn’t fund preschool.
only if they are toilet trained!!!
kids are showing up for kindergarten still in diapers so it’s a given that large numbers will still be in diapers in pre-k
The average age of toilet training was 18 months in the 1950s. The average age is now 36 months. AVERAGE. Making it to the bathroom in time is one thing knowing how to wipe, flush and wash the hands is another.
teachers are forbidden to touch the kids’ bottoms
If y’all don’t see a problem with this you’ve been living under a rock
The Perry Pre-School Report was a longitudinal study that followed people from pre-school into adulthood and found that those with pre-school experiences out performed those without in almost all measures of success.
The study originated in Michigan.
The Federal Reserve under Janet Yellen “endorsed high-quality early childhood education as a key economic development strategy.”
That is where we should put more money.
Algebra, aside from people making that claim online, I’ve yet to see the source of that historical information.
Algebra, I’ve been urinating on your problem and its a changing experience.
I personally know a teacher who went looking for a child who had gone to the rest room and didn’t come out; the child was marooned in there “because I don’t know how to wipe.”
The teacher had to talk him through the process, because actually assisting was forbidden.
As for all the benefits of pre-k, that’s questionable. Most of the published data shows the kids who didn’t go to preschool catch up within a few years.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6426150/
Instead of spending money on pre-k, money would be better spent in high school, to stop the problem of 1/3 of incoming freshmen at our state universities/colleges needing remediation because their high school diplomas were actually fraudulent.
If parents actually did their job, of teaching their children how to wipe, in addition to how to recognize letters and numbers etc, state funded pre-k wouldn’t be considered necessary. There’s nothing going on in pre-k that couldn’t be going on at home or in licensed child care centers.
spend that money hiring math teachers for the high schools
I don’t think your math adds up, Algebra.
https://highscope.org/project/perry-preschool-study/
Alegebra, you threw out a dubious claim, I questioned it and you responded with an anecdote. I work in kindergarten. I can come up with my own anecdotes. We all know that many parents should do better. However, it can be difficult to do better when wage growth falls beneath inflation and people have to work more for less.
Algebra don’t punish all kids for the actions of a few.
Pre-K benefits everybody.
As an anti-homeschooler, I want kids safe, secure, and learning in a conducive environment where there is accountability.
As a retired teacher who is still in the loop, I have never heard anyone complain about non-potty-trained students OR litter boxes in the classroom.
A great number of the rural school districts in SD have funded pre-kindergarten programs both because of the benefits of having children prepared for kindergarten and the absence of quality preschools in the communities. Many charge nothing leveling the expenses into the elementary school budget. In the 20 years I administered the school, no issue arose with students not bathroom trained. When we started our program I heard comments about pre-k being only free babysitting but they were by the same folks who opposed most everything else as well.