Universal Preschool

Opinion:
"Proposition 82: Aftermath" By Carl L. Brodt, August 23, 2007
Chagrined and confused by the “death of a 1000 cuts” delivered by opponents to Proposition 82 on June 6, initiative-sponsor actor/director Rob Reiner offered “an invitation to our opposition, to those who voted against universal preschool, who have all said preschool is the right thing. … I’m here to ask them to help us—come up with another way.” Although many reasons for voting against Proposition 82 surfaced during the campaign, most of the reasons boiled down to the initiative’s ignoring 5 fundamental rules in drafting legislation—rules which must be part of “another way” to implement preschool for all. (7.94 kb)

Opinion:
"Proposition 82: Not a good idea" By Peter H. Hanley, San Mateo County Times, June 1, 2006
Proposition 82 on the June ballot, like all things that are too good to be true, sounds great until you really take a look at exactly what it will do and exactly who will benefit. The fact is, Prop. 82 will do very little to help our struggling K-12 system or the kids most at risk. (16.8 kb)

Opinion:
"82 Reasons to Vote Against Proposition 82 -- AKA Rob Reiner's Preschool for All (PFA) Act" By Carl L. Brodt, May 30, 2006
Proposition 82 begins a new multi-billion dollar entitlement program despite the fact that the State cannot currently meet its current fiscal obligations. (70.3 kb)

White Paper:
"Proposition 82 / Preschool for All: Good Question, Wrong Answer" By Peter H. Hanley, California Parents for Educational Choice, May 2006
Pushed by Hollywood’s Rob Reiner, Proposition 82 offers nearly the most expensive approach imaginable, lays a foundation for ever greater cost explosions, disproportionately subsidizes middle class and affluent families, and is premised on limited and misrepresented research. It would dismantle today’s public-private preschool network that offers parents choices and substitute an extension of the public education bureaucratic morass that has failed children for decades. (673 kb)

Opinion:
"Reiner's plan too pricey, risky Benefits of preschool, which are in question, can be had in weeks, not a year" By Lance Izumi, Orange County Register, March 20, 2006
How much preschool is needed to get children ready for kindergarten and subsequent grades? According to actor/director Rob Reiner's Proposition 82, which will appear on the June ballot, the answer is one year of government-run preschool for all 4-year-olds at a cost of $2.4 billion per year. Yet, the fact is that there is a much less expensive, successful five-week preschool program that has already been operating for two years in California. (12.2 kb)

Opinion:
"Universal preschool -- right idea, wrong proposition" by Alan Bonsteel, San Francisco Chronicle, Friday, February 17, 2006
This June, the most important issue on the ballot will be Proposition 82, Rob Reiner's effort to bring universal preschool to California. While the evidence for the benefit of universal preschool is strong, even those who favor publicly financed preschool will want to see Reiner's deeply flawed initiative fail. (19.3 kb)

Opinion:
"Reiner Initiative bad for preschoolers" by Alan Bonsteel, Orange County Register, Monday, February 6, 2006
It's now official: Californians will see a Preschool for All Act initiative on the June ballot sponsored by Hollywood personality Rob Reiner. Unfortunately, while the evidence for the benefit of preschool is strong, even those who favor publicly financed preschool will want to see Reiner's bungled effort defeated. (17.3 kb)

Opinion:
"Offer Vouchers instead: Public  School System  too  bureaucratic to expand" by Alan Bonsteel, M.D. USA Today, November 3, 1999
The movement toward universal preschool in the United States reflects the strong evidence of its benefit, especially to our many immigrant children for whom English is a second language. (173 kb)