Detroit Education Coalition Evaluates City’s Pre-K Programs

Excellent Schools Detroit has compiled a scorecard of pre-K offerings available to children in the city.

Courtesy of Excellent Schools Detroit

The organization Excellent Schools Detroit is ranking city programs for children under 6 years old. The coalition works to provide parents with information about learning opportunities for their children, as well as to improve the quality of Pre-K education in Detroit.

ESD’s Vice President of Early Learning Denise Smith says of the 140 programs evaluated, only one received a gold medal.

“They have really good interpersonal relationships—that means between adult and children they’re showing respect and really listening for the cues from children. They are a staff working well together. You will see a really good, solid and well-rounded program if you’ve achieved a gold.”

-Denise Smith

Smith says scores are calculated from statewide ratings, staff surveys and in-person reviews. She says almost a third of the programs evaluated rated in the organization’s lowest-performing category. 

Access the Excellent Schools Detroit Scorecard here, and click on the audio link above for the full conversation.

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