| | Hawaii |
| Name of Program | Hawaii Preschool Open Doors Project |
| Description | Enables parents of 3- and 4-year-olds living at or below 75% of the state median income to use certificates to purchase full day early care and education programs at licensed centers. (2) |
| Number of kids served by program | 800 children (FY99) (2) |
| State oversight body | Department of Human Services (DHS) (1) |
| Brief history of program, when it was enacted, by whom, etc. | Open Doors was established in 1989-90 to help low-income families provide their preschool aged children with one or more years of preschool experience to help ensure their readiness for kindergarten. (1) |
| Required staff qualifications | Teachers may qualify with a bachelor's degree in any field with 12 credits in early childhood education and six months of experience. A teacher also may qualify with a postsecondary credential in a Child Development Associate program or an organized two-year college program and certificate in early childhood education, plus one year of supervised training experience in an early childhood program. These qualifications are in accordance with child care licensing guidelines. (3) |
| Teacher/child ratios | 1:16 (3) |
| Maximum class size | No regulations (3) |
| Parental involvement | |
| Educational program | |
| Method of evaluation | An evaluation to assess parent satisfaction with Open Doors was done in 1996 by the Families and Work Institute. (1) |
| Number of hours per day program operates | Full day |
| Number of days per year | School year |
| Are wrap around services provided? With whom? | No |
| Agencies eligible to operate programs | Any licensed program serving preschool-aged children is eligible for families to choose. (1) |
| Children eligible to enroll in program | 3- and 4-year-olds with special needs whose family have incomes below 75% of the state median income are eligible. Priority is given to children closest to kindergarten age, those with special needs and those with the lowest incomes. Children are considered to have special needs if they are homeless, speak limited English, have developmental delays, have physical or mental impairments, or are in foster care. The vast majority of children participating in the imitative have family incomes below poverty. (3) |
| Funding method | Families are given a tuition subsidy certificate up to $350 per month for the school year and are required to pay a share of the subsidy (co-pay) based on their income. (1) (2) |
| Funding amount from state | $2.4 million (FY00) (3) |
| Additional funders | |
| Does the state supplement Head Start? | Yes |
| Amount of Head Start supplement | $524,000 (FY00) (3) |
| Website | |
| Contact information |
CONTACT INFORMATION |
| |
Department of Human Services
1390 Miller Street, Room 209
Honolulu, HI
96813
(808)587-5254
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