San Francisco Department of Early Childhood and Early Learning for All network

Design · All designs
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 1 study (1 qualitative), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description

The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood (DEC) is a dedicated local governing agency for early childhood, reporting to the mayor, formed in 2013 and renamed in 2022 when it merged with First 5 San Francisco. It uses city funds, including Proposition C commercial rent tax revenue generating $180 million to $220 million annually with 85% dedicated to ECE, to incentivize providers to join its Early Learning for All network. In 2025 the network included 174 centers and 363 family child care providers; members must meet DEC's quality standards, accept subsidy children, and provide data, and in return receive supplemental funding, wage supplements, professional development and coaching, and family referrals.

Design Implications

Context

Requirements

• Providers must meet DEC's quality standards, which are higher than most federal and state requirements
• Providers must agree to accept children receiving child care subsidies and provide data regularly to DEC
• Dedicated local tax revenue

Constraints

• San Francisco is the only case study site able to raise teacher qualifications and compensation at scale, due to its local commercial tax

Target Learners

• Children birth to age 5 in San Francisco
• Families with low and moderate incomes

Learning Goals

• Equitable access to high-quality preschool and child care
• Workforce qualification and compensation improvements

Claims

• Common Quality Standards Address Disparities [+M]
• Tk Preschool Teacher Pay Disparities Persist [+M]

Related Designs

Examples

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Key Sources

• Melnick, H., Wechsler, M. E., Wang, V., & Plasencia, S. (2026). Universal preschool in California: Promising practices for mixed delivery systems. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/724.211

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	design
id	sf-dec-early-learning-for-all-network
title	San Francisco Department of Early Childhood and Early Learning for All network
description	The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood (DEC) is a dedicated local governing agency for early childhood, reporting to the mayor, formed in 2013 and renamed in 2022 when it merged with First 5 San Francisco.
status	review
generated	by process:settle-candidates on 2026-10-10
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
sources	1 — melnick-2026

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