The transition into kindergarten often serves as the basis for long-term disparities in educational attainment because initially small differences in early learning widen throughout the K-12 educational system. Given the long-standing disparities in their academic achievement related to being of low socioeconomic status and a racial/ethnic minority, the large and growing population of English language learners constitutes an important population in which to study the transition into formal schooling. The purpose of this book chapter is to describe the vulnerabilities faced by English language learners during this transitional period and the implications of this transition for their short- and long-term educational success. Throughout this chapter, we highlight how this transition into kindergarten may be amenable to policy intervention, its role in inequality, and how researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners can capitalize on the many strengths of these children and their families to facilitate a successful transition to school. [This paper was published in: A. Mashburn, J. LoCasale-Crouch, & K. Pears (Eds.), "Kindergarten Transition and Readiness: Promoting Cognitive, Social-Emotional, and Self-Regulatory Development" (pp. 185-204) Cham, Switzerland: Springer.]