(1) Beginning with the hearing held in January of
2025 as part of the annual hearing held pursuant to the State Measurement for
Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act, part 2 of
article 7 of title 2, the department shall report on the implementation and
effectiveness of the Colorado universal preschool program in the preceding fiscal
year. At a minimum, the report must include:
(a) The number of eligible children served by preschool providers, specifying:
(I) The number of eligible children who received only universal preschool
services;
(II) The number of eligible children with disabilities who received preschool
services;
(III) The number of eligible children three years of age and younger who
received preschool services;
(IV) The number of eligible children who received additional preschool
services;
(V) The number and percentage of eligible children enrolled in the preschool
program who were in low-income families and who met one or more qualifying
factors, including identifying the qualifying factors that were met; and
(VI) The demographics of the eligible children enrolled in the preschool
program, including, but not limited to, race, ethnicity, disability, and income;
(b) The number of children who were eligible to receive funding for
additional preschool services but did not due to insufficient funding and the amount
that would have fully funded additional preschool services for all eligible children;
(c) The number of eligible children who did not enroll in preschool providers;
(d) The extent to which a mixed delivery system of preschool providers is
available and the enrollment capacity of the mixed delivery system throughout the
state;
(e) The amount of funding distributed to preschool providers through the
preschool program, in total and disaggregated by communities with local
coordinating organizations and areas of the state that do not have local
coordinating organizations;
(f) The per-child rates established pursuant to section 26.5-4-208 (1) for
universal preschool services, preschool services for children with disabilities,
preschool services for eligible children who are three years of age or younger, and
additional preschool services for the fiscal year with an explanation of the formulas
for determining the per-child rates;
(g) Of the amount appropriated from the preschool programs cash fund, the
amount, expressed as a dollar amount and a percentage of the total appropriation,
that:
(I) Was distributed to fund universal preschool services;
(II) Was distributed to fund preschool services for children with disabilities;
(III) Was distributed to fund preschool services for eligible children three
years of age and younger;
(IV) Was distributed to fund additional preschool services;
(V) Was distributed for specified purposes pursuant to section 26.5-4-208
(1)(d) with an explanation of each specified purpose and the preschool providers or
communities that received the distributions;
(VI) Is attributable to each weighting factor, if any, included in the formulas
created pursuant to section 26.5-4-208 (1); and
(VII) Was spent on administrative expenses of the department and each local
coordinating organization;
(h) The number of eligible children for whom additional preschool services or
other full-day preschool services were provided using resources other than the
money distributed through the preschool program and the sources of those
resources;
(i) Quantitative data, and qualitative data if available, including student
outcomes to the extent they are available, demonstrating the effectiveness of the
preschool program in improving the overall learning and school readiness of
children who receive preschool services through the preschool program, including
the results of the independent evaluation conducted pursuant to section 26.5-4-207 (2);
(j) The changes, if any, in the availability of child care for infants and
toddlers, statewide and within communities or areas, following implementation of
the preschool program;
(k) Any other information that indicates the effectiveness of the preschool
program in serving eligible children throughout the state; and
(l) Any recommendations for legislative or regulatory changes to improve the
effectiveness of the preschool program.
(2) The department may request and local coordinating organizations and
preschool providers shall provide information as necessary for the department to
prepare the report described in subsection (1) of this section.
(3) The department shall annually publish on the department website the
information provided in the report described in subsection (1) of this section.