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For the past eight years, the has provided a valuable service in taking a snapshot of how states are progressing in the creation of high-quality preschool programs for 3- and 4-year-old children. Yesterday, the institute released its , exposing uneven enrollment numbers and confirming concerns that the recession has hurt state-funded pre-K programs.

“This was the first year to be influenced by the recession,” the stated, “and we found a slow down in progress in all three key dimensions that we evaluate — access, quality standards, and resources.”

The news was not all bad. Looking at the United States as a whole, enrollment in state-funded pre-K did increase by more than 80,000 children from the 2007-08 year to the 2008-09 school year. But whether state-funded pre-K survived budget cuts varies greatly by state. Nine states decreased enrollment. Twelve still have no state-funded program at all.

Here’s a map showing where states stand on enrollment for 4-year-olds (A larger version is .):

The report is rich in data and Early Ed Watch will be taking a long look in the coming weeks. For now, see the that are stemming from the report, as well as this that includes several charts and graphs. And don’t miss Ed Week’s indepth piece, “.”