Local preschools will likely see more slots open up for young students, improved teacher training and instructional quality, and increased jobs for staffers through billions of federal dollars slated for early childhood education in the recently approved stimulus law.

And in the long term, experts say, that's good news for local communities, given that recent studies show preschoolers are better prepared for kindergarten, more likely to do well on standardized tests and graduate on time from high school.

"The importance of preschool is finally being credited and recognized," said Whittier resident Celia Ayala, chief operating officer at the nonprofit Los Angeles Universal Preschool that helps fund and train staff in preschool programs throughout the county.

"We do feel extremely positive that the president is coming in with a big focus on prioritizing early childhood education," Ayala said.

More than $5 billion was set aside for early education in the stimulus package signed by President Obama last month.

In California, $210 million will go toward improving Head Start and Early Head Start programs for low-income toddlers and students, while more than $220 million would enhance child care for infants and toddlers.

Stimulus money would also pay for more funding for in-depth training for current preschool educators.

"There are long waiting lists - 55,000 students in the state waiting for preschool," said Scott Moore, senior policy adviser for Preschool California.

"We don't have enough funding to provide publicly funded preschool to low-income kids, and we are not even including middle- and upper-income children," he said.

Increased funding would help resolve those issues and make preschool or other early education more available to families.

In Los Angeles County, fewer than half of all 4-year-olds have access to any preschool at all - and only a fraction are enrolled in high-quality programs that produce lasting results, according to LAUP.

That's why LAUP is looking into a possible Title II federal funds that could provide as much as $100 million nationwide to improve the quality of the preschool work force.

Ayala said LAUP has a strong work-force initiative, and is partnering with colleges and universities to attract, train and retrain existing staff.

"Since LAUP began (in 2004), we've created 1,200 jobs that were not there before," she said.

"We have seen that many women have now opened businesses of their own - either by providing family child care in their own homes or by being able to (access) child care so they can work - and that is impacting the economy in L.A. county."

That was certainly the case for West Whittier resident Grace Castro, 41, who runs a family preschool/daycare out of her home.

She has a three-hour preschool program in the morning, an afternoon Head Start program and gives after-school care to one child.

By starting her own day care, Castro said she was making more than she made at two other jobs combined, and was able to stay home with her daughters and stay close to them as they grew up.

"Right now, one of my goals is to do 24 kids in Head Start. As a businesswoman, I want to start preparing for that," Castro said. "And I think this (new money) will give parents the opportunity to dream and open their own businesses.

"We need to work with what we have now," she said. "If not, these young children will be our future criminals. We need to work now to serve the children in our communities."

Ayala said the state is currently holding hearings to discuss the pots of federal monies and priorities for funding.

"So we don't know how much will be allocated to what area," Ayala said.

But the extra funds should make it easier to provide preschool programs to more children and ensure kids enter kindergarten with the necessary academic skills.

State Superintendent of Schools Jack O'Connell said early education in California needs more commitment from parents and educators, in light of data that reiterates the fact students who attended preschool are more likely to succeed throughout their educational career.

While preschool is not mandatory for children, parents need to be aware of the benefits their child would receive from being in an academic environment early, O'Connell said.

"The RAND study from last year found that the achievement gap exists before kids get into kindergarten," he said. "The stimulus might be the best expenditure to help close this gap."