Cincinnati Preschool Promise (CPP), an organization dedicated to building equitable access to early childhood education, reports that it provided tuition assistance to 1,090 preschool students last year, nearly double the number of students since the organization's first year in 2017.
Executive Director Chara Fischer Jackson says the success of CPP is due to public funding and support for the program, which provides families in Cincinnati living at or below 300% of the federal poverty line with access to preschool education.
"Almost 90 percent [of families] would otherwise not be able to afford preschool, but for this investment that the public made to say, 'Yes, we want to commit funds to make sure that happens,' " she told WVXU.
Since Preschool Promise's inception, Jackson says the push to get more kids in preschools has made a measurable impact on Cincinnati's education landscape.
2024-2025 data on kindergarten readiness shows the percentage of students entering CPS schools who are demonstrating or approaching readiness for kindergarten after enrolling in a CPP preschool is at 68.3%, a nearly 6% improvement from the previous year.
"We know what happens in those early years lays the foundation for a child to learn how to learn," Jackson says. "What it also showed us is they're building that resilience to have consistent and regular attendance at school."
Funding for Preschool Promise will be on the ballot this Nov. 4. Issue 28 is a 10-year renewal levy to fund operations at Cincinnati Public Schools and CPP. If renewed, the levy would provide $48 million in annual funding without raising taxes, with $15 million allocated toward CPP.
Jackson says the levy's passage is essential for keeping Preschool Promise going in the years to come, as the organization continues to expand its network of preschools, train early childhood educators, and offer tuition assistance to more students. The organization boasts a total of 206 preschool providers and 379 teaching grant recipients.
"Without that levy funding, there is no Cincinnati Preschool Promise," she said.
Voters approved five-year versions of the levy twice before, most recently in 2020 with an overwhelming margin — 70% voting in favor.
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