The topic of Pre-Kindergarten (pre-K) education has become very well known throughout the nation, especially with the ever-increasing pressures for schools to produce better and brighter students. Schools are challenged to educate all children adequately, no matter their background (race, socioeconomic status, parental education level, etc.) or their current capabilities when they enter kindergarten. The purpose of the study was to determine what, if any, benefits children may experience through their time in a voluntary, state-funded pre-K program in Tennessee, as measured by the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) reading measures. Because Tennessee is not a Universal pre-K (UPK) state, not all children who could benefit from the skills taught in pre-K are accepted into such a program. Enrollment criteria are placed on enrolling students, and include socioeconomic status, students with disabilities, students qualified as English Language Learners, and students who are in state custody. Because of limited funding, many school districts may be able to fund only a few pre-K classrooms, which can lead to some children not being accepted, even if they meet the enrollment requirements. The current study found no statistically significant differences in scores on DIBELS reading measures or special education placements from kindergarten through the third grade for students who attended state-funded pre-K programs in Tennessee and students who did not attend state-funded pre-K programs in Tennessee. Even when considering the socioeconomic status of the students, state-funded pre-K program attendance did not show statistically significant differences in comparison to the students who did not attend the state-funded pre-K programs. However, based on the entrance requirements for current pre-K programs, an assumption could be made that the students in pre-K programs are entering pre-K already at a disadvantage to some of their higher-socioeconomic peers, or peers without disabilities, or peers who speak English as their native language. The researcher contends that a lack of differences in scores does not necessarily indicate failure by the pre-K programs, but actually the opposite. Pre-K program attendance appears to help "level" the students in each grade, regardless of background. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]