Pre-K enrollments and teaching environments in North Carolina elementary schools

Prior research finds that some high-quality preschool programs are successful in generating significant initial academic gains and long-term benefits for students as they progress through school. This study examines one of the mechanisms through which North Carolina’s statewide pre-K program (NC Pre-K) may generate such benefits: improvements in the teaching environments of the elementary schools in which NC Pre-K graduates enroll. We find that an increased presence of former NC Pre-K students in elementary schools over the period 2004–2018 was associated with better teachers’ perceptions of different dimensions of their teaching environment, as well as increased teacher and principal retention. Our findings suggest that pre-K expansion policies may benefit the entire school community.