The state of Hawaiʻi is moving toward universal pre-K, with a target completion of 2032. However, current access to early childhood care and education (ECE) programs varies widely from community to community, making it difficult for stakeholders to accurately track the allocation of ECE resources across neighborhoods and islands, as well as strategically plan the statewide expansion.
Designed to fill this puka, the Center on the Family, currently part of the Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences, has launched Access to Early Childhood Education and Care in Hawai‘i.
The new interactive web tool will measure and map access to ECE resources. It will reveal and highlight those areas with the greatest unmet needs, and provide the fine-grain data needed to inform policymakers, advocates, and providers.
“The web tool will allow users to select different geographic areas and driving distances or public transit commute times, then see results for specific areas of the state,” says Barbara DeBaryshe, who along with Javzandulam Azuma and Ivette Rodriguez Stern will lead the project. “This innovative methodology gives a detailed picture of ECE access that was not previously available.”
She adds, “Results are being shared with our early learning system leaders and state legislators. We expect our work will play a key role in planning and monitoring progress toward Hawai‘i’s goal of universal preK access, starting first with under-served populations.”
For more info, visit the Center on the Family.