Beyond the Classroom: The Broader Effects of Public Preschool Expansion on Children’s Early Educational Experiences and Early Literacy Skills

Preschool has direct effects on attendees, but less is known about how public preschool expansions targeted to low-income children affect early educational experiences and school readiness in a broader community. We use Virginia administrative data (~630,000 students) and a discrete increase in targeted public pre-K (Virginia Preschool Initiative Plus [VPI+]) to estimate the effects of means-tested pre-K expansion on preschool participation patterns and school readiness. VPI+ expansion decreased the probability that children spend no time in licensed settings (6–7 percentage points), increasing the probability for public pre-K and private centers (5–8 and 2–3 percentage points, respectively). Kindergarten literacy skills improve (5%–6% of SD ). Effects are larger among the target population but shared broadly (perhaps through private centers). These previously unmeasured benefits inform future policy and research.