Source: News & Observer
Significant expansion would be costly. About 62,000 low-income children are eligible for the free NC Pre-K, and about 47 percent of them are being served. The legislature last year funded 3,500 additional slots, which will cost $27 million over two years. Goodnight said the added money will mean about 50 percent of disadvantaged children will be covered, and about 75 percent coverage is about all that’s possible given parent interest. Another challenge is on the horizon. Some schools face a space crunch for pre-K classrooms due to legislative mandates to reduce class size in early grades.