Five-year-old Nova walks across the graduation stage wearing a bright pink tulle dress and silver tiara along with her graduation cap and gown. Nova has a very special role at her preschool’s graduation ceremony. She takes the microphone to introduce a graduation performance.
“And now it’s time for a special dance,” she said confidently.
Nova is one of more than 1,700 Preschool for All kids who are entering kindergarten this year after graduating from a participating preschool provider, the most in program history.
It’s an accomplishment larger than it seems on the surface to her mom, Ivory Hamock.
“Since she was born, she’s been so socially anxious,” Hamock said. “In her home she lets loose, and as soon as we walk out of our door she’s like, ‘nah-uh.’”
Nova is unquestionably a bright child. She knows her ABCs, how to count to 20 and how to spell her name. “And I know how to sing songs like ‘The Itsy Bitsy Spider.’”
But her mom said that for years, Nova’s shyness wouldn’t let that shine through in social settings.
“That was one of my biggest fears with her going to kindergarten, because it's a bigger school with more people,” Hamock said.
Seeing her child speak in front of a crowd shows the progress she’s made at TCA Creative Minds Academy, a provider with Preschool for All, the groundbreaking Multnomah County program that connects 3- and 4-year-olds to free, high-quality and culturally responsive preschool.
Preschool for All also offers providers professional development and coaching to strengthen their teaching practices, as well as inclusion support for children with a wide range of learning and developmental needs. Hamock said the resources that Preschool for All offers educators helped Nova’s teachers give her the support she needed to communicate with confidence.
In the last several months, whenever Hamock picked Nova up from school, she found her child talking and playing with other kids.
“I’m so happy and so proud,” Hamock said.
Preschool for All supports Kindergarten Transitions
Social development is just one of the areas of child development that preschool attendance improves. Preschool for All is dedicated to helping children with Kindergarten Transitions, the transition period when children move from preschool or home into elementary school. Providers encourage a smooth transition to K-12 schools by teaching skills that match what children will experience in kindergarten and partnering with families and local schools. Preschool for All has resources to support children socially, emotionally and academically, and help children with disabilities or delays move from early intervention plans (IFSP) to school plans (IEP).
A survey from Boston University's Center on the Ecology of Early Development on Preschool for All families showed an overwhelming majority felt their children were proficient in transition skills like gross motor, communication and social skills.
Evidence also shows children who attend preschool have positive future outcomes. According to a 2021 Massachusetts Institute of Technology study, children who attended preschool were more likely to graduate high school, more likely to enroll in college, had fewer school suspensions in high school, and were less likely to experience juvenile incarceration.
For Nova and her family, preschool was an important step to increase her confidence before starting school.
“That aspect of her coming out of her shell, I feel, is going to set her up for success,” said Hamock.
Nova said she will miss her friends from preschool, but she is excited for kindergarten. She wants to read a lot of books — her favorite is Pete the Cat. And as for what she is most excited about in kindergarten?
“There’s going to be no nap time!”
Preschool for All still has seats
Preschool for All still has seats available for the 2026-27 school year. This year, the program received a record number of applications. The County nearly doubled the number of available seats from last school year, allowing the program to offer more than 7,000 children free preschool. The application for the 2026-27 school year will remain open until it transitions to the 2027-28 school year next spring.
