Multnomah County’s Preschool for All program exceeds goals, but can’t meet demand

Multnomah County’s Preschool For All program has overshot its goals in each of its first three years, and this year is no exception. The county's coal was to support 3,000 slots, but it expects to have capacity for 3,800 3 and 4-year-olds in the 2025-2026 school year. Still, that number is far below demand, with nearly double the amount of applications filed every year than there are slots available. Backers hope capacity will be sufficient by 2030, when the county aims to offer 11,000 slots and meet its goal of universal access.

County voters approved the Preschool For All ballot measure in 2020 and the program opened in the 2022-23 school year. The preschool effort is funded by a 1.5% marginal tax on earnings of more than $150,000 per year for an individual and over $200,000 for households. 

Leslee Barnes, director of the Preschool and Early Learning Division at Multnomah County, and Patrick Earnest, director of the St. James Child Development Center, join us to talk about the program.