GRANTEE ABSTRACT

Connecticut

Overview 

Connecticut’s ambitious and achievable plan 

will build off our existing strong state preschool 

infrastructure to expand access to high-quality 

State Preschool Programs for 428 children and 

to improve the quality of State Preschool 

Programs for another 284 children, for a total of 

712 four-year-olds who are at or below 200 

percent of the Federal Poverty Line in 14 highneed communities. Having a strong 

infrastructure of State Preschool Programs that 

has successfully expanded access twice in the 

last two fiscal years allows us to place children 

in high-quality preschool programs quickly and 

efficiently. 

Project Objectives and Activities 

High-quality components, as defined in this 

grant, will be foundational to this project. 

Connecticut’s plan will enhance quality in areas 

the state has longed to improve. Connecticut 

will improve quality by: 

• offering comprehensive services in our 

State Preschool Programs; 

• offering teacher compensation equal to 

K-12 teachers; 

•	 deepening family engagement practices 

at the local level; 

•	 forging a seamless birth-through-thirdgrade continuum at the local level; and 

enhancing our professional 

•	 development system to offer more 

targeted and individualized coaching, 

mentoring and consultation designed to 

meet the unique needs of programs and 

teachers. 

The primary objective is the expansion and 

improvement of high-quality State Preschool 

Programs to four-year-old children whose 

families have incomes at or below 200 percent 

of the Federal Poverty Line. 

Lead Agency 

Connecticut Office of Early Childhood 

Year 1 Federal Award Amount 

$ 12,499,000 

Plan Period 

January 1, 2015 – December 31, 2018 

Preschool Development Grants will support
 

states to build, develop, and expand voluntary,
 

high-quality preschool programs for children 

from low- and moderate-income families.
 

There are two types of grants. 

Development Grants are for states that 

currently serve less than 10 percent of fouryear-olds and have not received a Race to the 

Top – Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) 

grant. 

Expansion Grants are for states that currently 

serve 10 percent or more of four-year-olds or 

have received an RTT-ELC grant. 

This abstract was submitted as part of Connecticut’s Preschool Development Grant Application. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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EXPANSION GRANTEE: CONNECTICUT 

Key State Activities 

1.	 Complete MOUs with Subgrantees; issue 

grant awards; initiate payments 

2.	 Conduct media and outreach campaign to 

reach out to all parents of eligible children 

3.	 Ensure that eligible homeless children and 

children living in foster homes are given 

priority for improved and expanded 

preschool slots 

4.	 Ensure children with disabilities are included 

in classrooms with new or improved 

preschool slots 

5.	 Issue an RFP and contract for a third-party 

evaluation of this project 

6.	 Hire two new Office of Early Childhood staff 

for family engagement/community outreach 

and quality, accountability and reporting 

7.	 Implement CLASS training for school 

readiness liaisons and others identified by 

the Subgrantees 

8.	 Initiate Continuous Quality Improvement 

process with Subgrantees 

9.	 Initiate community collaboration and family 

engagement process with Subgrantees 

Key Subgrantee Activities 

1.	 Complete MOUs with the Office of Early 

Childhood 

2.	 Use local decision-making process to select 

early learning providers and issue subawards 

3.	 Use start-up funding to ensure that 

classrooms are ready by September 2015 

4.	 Ensure new staff are hired and trained prior 

to September 2015 

5.	 Arrange contracts or MOUs for additional 

comprehensive services 

6.	 Conduct local outreach to all families of 

eligible children
 

7.	 Provide ongoing monitoring and supervision 

of all classrooms of new and improved slots 

8.	 Participate in continuous quality 

improvement process with the Office of Early 

Childhood 

9.	 Participate in community collaboration
 

activities with the Office of Early Childhood 

10. Participate in family engagement activities 

with the Office of Early Childhood 

Proposed Project Outcomes 

Children participating in this project will be 

better prepared upon kindergarten entry. 

Providing comprehensives in State Preschool 

Programs will ensure early identification of 

children with special needs and ensure that all 

children are healthy and thriving upon 

kindergarten entry. Connecticut families will be 

better informed and engaged in how best to 

support their children’s healthy development. 

Connecticut will be better equipped to recruit, 

develop and retain highly trained and skilled 

early learning teachers by increasing 

compensation. Communities will be better off 

because their children will be healthy, thriving 

and ready for lifelong success. 

Bridgeport 

Derby 

East Haven 

Griswold 

Groton 

Hamden 

Hebron 

Killingly 

Manchester 

Naugatuck 

Seymour 

Torrington 

Vernon 

Wolcott 

High Need Communities to be served 

under Connecticut’s Plan 

This abstract was submitted as part of Connecticut’s Preschool Development Grant Application. 

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