As public school enrollment continues to decline across California, a remarkable thing is happening in districts: More students are entering transitional kindergarten. But that growth has come at a cost.
Community-based preschools across the state have struggled to compete with free TK, and many have shuttered — worsening the shortage of licensed child care spaces for children younger than 4 years old.
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Between 2019 and 2025, around 1,100 preschools have closed their doors across California, representing just under 10% of the total, according to research published Monday by UC Berkeley’s Equity and Excellence in Early Childhood. They were licensed to serve around 32,000 young children, and experts say their closures will likely increase prices in a state where the average annual cost of infant care surpasses $20,000.
“These centers are not coming back. We’re going to lose these places forever,” said Bruce Fuller, an education professor at UC Berkeley and co-author of the report.
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