The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Tuition for full day kindergarteners fully funded
Half-day kindergarten classes in the Gunnison School District will be eradicated district-wide next year in favor of full-day, tuition-free programs made possible by the recent mill levy override.
Research from a 2005 Education Commission of the States study demonstrates that students involved in full-day programs show a significantly higher rate of academic progress over the course of kindergarten than their half-day peers. The Economic Opportunity Institute also reported in 2007 that full-day kindergarten students perform at higher levels in fundamental areas such as reading and math.
“Low-income, high-income and Spanish-speaking groups all end up with higher academic gains, research supports,” RE1J superintendent Doug Tredway said in a presentation to the board of education on Monday, February 9.
Although tuition-free kindergarten has a been priority of the Colorado Department of Education since 2009, not until the recent passing of the mill levy in Gunnison County did free programs become possible. As of January 1, tuition for kindergarteners enrolled in full-day programs is completely funded by the district.
“To operate this program without the tuition revenue definitely shows a big financial commitment from the district, which in turn comes from the support of our community in voting for the mill levy,” Sally Hensley, principal of the Crested Butte Elementary School, said.
The annual budget has been amended to accommodate fiscal changes resulting from the mill levy override. In lieu of tuition, approximately $67,000 of the Fund 26 monies has been set aside to pay the salaries and benefits of two kindergarten teachers for the current semester, business manager Stephanie Juneau explained.
Future budgets will also take into consideration full-day kindergarten programs when allocating Fund 26 monies.
Currently, the Crested Butte Elementary School still offers one half-day section, consisting of eight students. Tredway and Hensley both note this section is not economically sound.
“Historically, over the last five years, we have seen our enrollment drop substantially in the half-day program,” Hensley said. “It just isn’t feasible to put the option out there if you are only going to have a class of eight students.”
Full-day kindergarten programs will allow equitable class sizes across the district, Hensley says. While tuition used to cover teacher salaries and benefits, now that responsibility falls to the district. An equal number of students in each class is essential in ensuring this program is financially sound.
“Half-day programs are just not sustainable at this level of involvement,” Hensley said. “We would never make decisions based fully on financial realities, but that is part of the equation.”
While a full day of school may seem excessive for a kindergarten-age child, Hensley commended early childhood experts across the valley who are working to ensure that programming is developmentally appropriate.
“There is a balance between learning, play and experiential opportunities for kids, so we are trying to be responsive to the needs of young children within a full-day program,” Hensley explained.
Hensley also said many children entering full-day kindergarten programs have already experienced full days of preschool, so the transition should be fairly smooth. However, for those parents who would have opted for half-day programming, Hensley says, discussions are under way on how to accommodate their needs.
“We are looking at alternative scheduling ideas to sort of meet those people half-way,” Hensley said. “We want to consider the needs of all of our families as much as we can.”
Since support for this program is currently available through Fund 26, Tredway believes the district should take full advantage of this auspicious moment and move forward with full-day kindergarten, which has been proven to align with the district’s mission of “ensuring all students’ success.”
“Research, funding and priorities across the state dictate that full-day programs are the best way to move forward,” Tredway said.
