21CSLA (21st Century California School Leadership Academy)

The Universal Transitional Kindergarten (UTK) policy is a cornerstone of California’s broader efforts to expand early childhood education under the Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) initiative. As the state progresses toward making early childhood education accessible to all four-year-olds by 2026, the role of teachers in the early implementation of UTK is vital. Exploring the professional and social support networks and systems available to UTK teachers will help identify opportunities for improving their effectiveness in early childhood education. We collected survey data from 143 UTK teachers, and conducted interviews with 21 of the survey respondents. Teachers reported receiving professional support from an average of 3.1 individuals out of a possible 6 and social support from an average of 2.67 individuals out of a possible 6. However, there was a notable gap, with 38.5% of teachers reporting no social support, and 17.5% reporting no professional support. This highlights the need to improve opportunities for teachers to strengthen social and professional connections. Additionally, the connections among individuals providing support were sparse, with only 11% of social support providers and 8% of professional support providers being connected to other support providers. This fragmentation indicates a lack of cohesiveness among partners, which could hinder the effectiveness of the support they provide to teachers. Furthermore, teachers perceived both the levels and benefits of professional and social support as moderate, indicating a clear need for improvement in both areas.