Dave Rice, deputy superintendent at Roseville Community Schools said the district’s pre-K expansion started about 10 years ago. Now the district is using a school bond to consolidate pre-K programming all into one building. (Ella Miller/Bridge Michigan)

This story was originally published by Bridge Michigan, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. Visit the newsroom online: bridgemi.com.

Michigan is pushing hard to get more 4-year-olds into pre-K by offering free instruction. 

That’s been a boon for some Michigan school districts. It means a chance to open new classrooms, renovate schools and, most importantly, get students in the K-12 pipeline.

In Macomb County, Roseville Community Schools is using part of a $175 million bond voters approved in 2026 to convert a traditional elementary school into an early childhood center that will include only pre-K and kindergarten programs. The move is part of a district “rightsizing” effort that also includes closing three other elementary schools and building a larger one.

“What we’ve known for many years is that we have too many school buildings,” said Deputy Superintendent Dave Rice. “And so part of this bond, a big part of it, there were two real focal points, was to reduce the footprint of the school district within the city and be way more efficient in how we run. And the other one was to consolidate our early childhood programs.” 

Rice and other district leaders across the state say they want to get families involved with public schools earlier on in hopes they’ll stay in the long-run.

“When they have a positive preschool experience, they are so excited to stay for K-12,” said Caitlin Opfermann, preschool administrator for Plymouth-Canton Community Schools.

Across the state, districts are adding pre-K classrooms, raising the pay of preschool instructors to be more in line with elementary teacher peers and using school bonds to make buildings ready for younger students. 

Kaleva Norman Dickson Schools is using part of a $9.5 million bond to move a pre-K program that has operated out of a portable classroom for years into a new childhood center that will also include two kindergarten classes and potentially a class for 3-year-olds. 

“The standards of kindergarten have increased significantly over the years,” said Superintendent Jake Veith. “You can tell a difference between a child academically who has come in with preschool and ones who have not. They are definitely ahead of their peers who have not.” 

These projects and others come as Michigan aims to increase the number of children in no-cost pre-K programs. 

Enrollment surge

More than 55,000 students were enrolled in the state’s signature pre-K option, the Great Start Readiness Program, as of May, according to the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP). 

So far, Michigan’s 56 intermediate school districts — also known as regional educational service agencies — have requested spots for 71,201 children in the next year, a 21% increase from the requests this time last year. 

One reason pre-K enrollment is rising so much is some preschool programs that were tuition-based are now offering free pre-K through the Great Start Readiness Program.

The program previously served only low-income students, but in 2025, Michigan expanded eligibility requirements so that families with any household income can participate in free pre-K. The state also changed its preschool requirements in recent years to allow a higher student-to-teacher ratio in the classroom. 

Some districts have seen major increases in enrollment. In Kent County, for example, enrollment in no-cost pre-K is expected to double in just a few years. 

What’s in it for districts? 

The state provides pre-K funding to intermediate school districts, which in turn distribute the funds to local schools and to licensed community-based providers.
Pre-K providers get per-pupil funding for students and may also apply for state funds to expand or create new classrooms. The state requires that intermediate districts allocate at least 30% of their pre-K programming to community providers. 

Since fiscal year 2023, the state has doled out about $66.2 million in grants for pre-K startups and expansions, resulting in 2,328 new or expanded classrooms statewide, according to MiLEAP. 

For some community-based centers, that can mean increased competition to draw in students. Zina Davis, executive director of the Children of the Rising Sun Empowerment Center, a private early-childhood education provider in Detroit, said some parents find it more convenient to send their 4-year-olds to the local school system where their older children already are.

Expansion is good for the state, she said, but it’s “not secure for us anymore. So we have to do extra work to get children.”

“I do love the fact that it’s free,” said Davis. “Our parents deserve all free from zero to 4, definitely, so we love the program. But what it does is it takes business from [community based organizations] into the public school system.”

In the state education budget that legislators approved last week, there is funding for 68,000 students to attend pre-K for all, according to the governor’s office.

The budget includes $3.6 million for new or expanded classrooms and $30 million for early childhood workforce efforts.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has not yet signed the education budget into law. 

Whitmer’s pre-K effort is a “great idea,” said Rice, the Roseville administrator.  “I think that too many families now have lost how important that schooling is for kids and early schooling.” 

“We have a transient community sometimes. So, what we do want to do is attract students to our district. We have a really strong district, a really good district, but getting them started and having them here from the start and keeping them here is important to us.” 

“Getting kids into formal education sooner can provide benefits, improvements to Michigan’s already flagging success rate,” said Craig Thiel, research director at the Citizens Research Council for Michigan. 

The research on early childhood education is positive though experts acknowledge higher costs to implement universal programs. 

Barriers to expansion 

While many praise the state’s efforts to expand access, they say even more can be done. 

Opfermann’s district, Plymouth-Canton, has renovated classrooms to make more pre-K available. The district is going from 18 classrooms to 21 classrooms this upcoming year. Opfermann hopes to eventually have 25 classrooms but needs more space.  

Roseville Community Schools will eventually convert Fountain Elementary into an early childhood center. Right now, the school operates pre-K and elementary grades but the preschoolers use a different playground than their elementary-aged peers because of licensing requirements. 

The district has to ensure that its preschool facilities meet requirements through the state’s Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) agency, said Rice.

Specific state rules on fingerprinting, teaching and playgrounds make sense for private child care centers, said Johannesburg-Lewiston Area Schools Superintendent Katy Xenakis-Makowski. But K-12 schools should not have to go through “all of these additional hoops” to add pre-K. 

“It’s really frustrating because I feel like this is another area where we have logistical roadblocks that are unnecessary,” said Xenakis-Makowski.

House Republicans are pushing for legislation that would stop public schools that operate pre-K classes being counted as child care facilities, which could save them costs on adhering to child care licensing rules. 

Senate Democrats are pushing for legislation that would update help by “removing burdensome barriers to opening and operating centers.”

Making sure all players are at the table

MiLEAP says the number of community providers participating in state pre-K is growing. Their participation has increased by about 50% in the last two fiscal years, according to MiLEAP.
Community providers can use a waiver to participate while they work toward fully complying with the state pre-K program. Intermediate districts must provide training to providers who are under a waiver.

Roughly 30-40% of students at Kent ISD attend a community-based provider. The district anticipates more than 6,000 children enrolled this upcoming school year across the school and community provider sites, known as a mixed-delivery system. 

“We want families to have a choice in where they send their children,” said Ashley Karsten, director of early childhood at Kent ISD.
”We want all children to receive pre-K for all, and in order for that to happen, and in order for there to be enough space, we have to have a mixed delivery approach.”

Licensed home providers are not eligible to operate Great Start Readiness Programs but some are offering free pre-K through a pilot program right now. 

Carey Wilson, community program co-director of the Child Care Network, said so far, the pilot is going “very, very well.” She expects more comprehensive results by the end of August. 

Meanwhile, more intermediate school districts plan to offer preschool for 3-year-olds this upcoming year through a state-funded pilot program. 

Ensuring students get trained teachers 

As Michigan expands, Karsten of Kent ISD said the state should focus on teacher compensation, a topic outlined in the state’s pre-k for all roadmap.
Preschool teachers can teach early elementary grades too, she said, and it’s important to keep them in the preschool space. 

Staff retention is “evidence of a really great program,” said Karsten, especially because rehiring and retraining teachers can take away time from improving the pre-K program in other ways. 

The need for more teachers comes as Michigan’s teacher churn is unsustainable, Bridge previously reported. Aspiring early childhood educators can participate in training programs that offer a college degree, coaching and ultimately higher wages.

Ensuring students with disabilities are included

Michigan’s pre-K for all effort also includes the federally funded Head Start preschool program, developmental kindergarten and early childhood special education.

More children in early childhood settings also means more children with disabilities or suspected disabilities, said Heather Eckner, director of statewide education at the Autism Alliance of Michigan.

But that also means pre-K administrators and teachers need to know how to identify students with disabilities and provide options for them to learn alongside their peers, she said. 

Karsten of Kent ISD said local programs have worked to make sure children with disabilities get experience with their peers in the classroom. Many special education providers are trained on the preschool curriculum so that they can help with lesson planning too. 

“We’re making sure that there isn’t this divide between early childhood and early childhood special education,” she said.