Here’s good news for parents of pre-K students.

South Carolina ranks 13th best for quality pre-Kindergarten education.

A study by the National Institute for Early Education Research showed that students enrolled in full-day pre-K programs do better on math and literacy tests than those who attend only partial day preschool.

Those who attend pre-K programs have less risk of future crimes than those who do not.

Pre-K programs may generate billions of dollars for the economy over a few decades by lessening the need for social services and creating more productive citizens.

WalletHub researchers compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia on 12 key metrics, including share of school districts that offer a state pre-K program, number of pre-K quality benchmarks met and reported spending per child in pre-K.

It ranked SC 11th for access, 12th for quality and 38th for resources and economic support.

Lexington County school districts offer options for students up to 5 years old.

Lexington 3 offers the BOOST Program (Beginning Opportunities Offered for Student Transition) for 2- and 3-year-olds at B-L Primary School.

B-L Primary School offers 4K, 5K and Montessori (4K and 5K together) classes.

Lexington 2 has 15 full-day, 4-year-old programs across the district.

All 4K classes are funded through CERDEP and are targeted for students meeting the 185% poverty level.

The district offers special education programs for preschool students beginning at age 3.

The STAR Family Partnership program is comprised of parent educators who partner with families with children from birth to school age.

The District 4 Early Childhood Center offers 3-5K, all day Montessori choice.

Visit the district websites for more information.

Districts 1 and 5 had not responded by press time.

The top 3 ranked in the Wallethub study overall were Nebraska, District of Columbia and Maryland.

At the bottom of the pack were Missouri, Mississippi and Indiana.

Neighboring North Carolina and Georgia were 29th and 25th, respectively.

Find the full study at https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-the-best-and-worst-early-education-systems/62668/ .