Superintendents’ decision making for funding full day prekindergarten programs in schools that serve low-income families

While abundant literature exists that outlines the benefits of investing in prekindergarten programs for children as well as the advantages of children attending prekindergarten, attention is needed to identify how decisions are actually made to fund full day prekindergarten programs. Most studies have focused on decision making in general and some studies have focused on the decision making process regarding implementing prekindergarten. Few studies, however, have focused on decision making for funding full day prekindergarten programs for low-income families. Additional research is needed to identify decision making factors and considerations that superintendents use to make decisions to fund full day prekindergarten programs. Therefore, this study identified characteristics superintendents use to describe their decision making processes and factors that were considered when making decisions for funding prekindergarten. Three questions guided the study: 1) How do superintendents characterize their decision making processes for funding full day prekindergarten programs serving low-income families? 2) What factors do superintendents consider to make full day prekindergarten funding decisions? 3) How do superintendents’ decision making practices, regarding funding for full day prekindergarten reflect rational decision making? A purposeful sampling method was used to select three superintendents for this study who had experience with decision making regarding funding for full day prekindergarten programs at the district level, had a minimum of two years in their role as superintendent, and who serve in large public school systems of at least 25,000 students. Face to face interviews, document analysis and observations were the primary data collection protocols. Findings suggest that superintendents characterize their decision making as collaborative, data-driven, and priority based. This study also found that superintendents appear to consider accessibility to high-quality education, benefit to community and sources of funding as factors when making decisions to fund full day prekindergarten. Further, a comparative analysis of the rational decision making framework and the decision making practices of superintendents suggest that the steps of a rational decision making process are completed to some extent. This study provides insight and information for practicing superintendents who attempt to make decisions for funding full day prekindergarten. Finally, given the nature and findings of the present study, recommendations for practice and further research are offeredEducational Leadership and Polic