That was the headline on an editorial in the Pasadena (CA) Star-News the other day. (except without the question mark.) I know that the longitudinal study of the High/Scope Perry Preschool Program showed that the Ypsilanti kids in that high-intensity program more than four decades ago were less likely to get involved in gangs later on. But gangs are killing people in Los Angeles and surrounding areas in the here and now. (See recent frontpager in the New York Times.)

I worry about overpromising. I was asked to give a talk this week about media coverage of pre-kindergarten at Yale University's Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy. Over lunch, Dr. Zigler, the father of Head Start and perhaps our most important scholar in this field, agreed that he was worried about overpromising as well. He's a huge believer in universal pre-kindergarten. But he also says that what happens in one or even two years of preschool doesn't end a child's poverty, completely change the family dynamics, or ensure that he or she will remain healthy and attend a high quality elementary, middle, and high school. End gangs? That seems like a big burden to shoulder a preschool with.

(I'll share more of my conversation with Dr. Zigler soon and look for an interview with him as well.