District promotes kindergarten plan

Thursday, April 22, 2004 | 11 a.m.

Clark County School District officials expect their new tuition-based full-day kindergarten program to yield political -- as well as academic -- benefits.

In addition to better preparing students for success in school, the district's officials hope the program will motivate parents who can't afford the $300-a-month tuition to lobby lawmakers to pay for the program outright, Clark County Schools Superintendent Carlos Garcia said.

"The interest in the program has been very strong -- parents think full-day kindergarten is important enough that they'll pay for it if that's the only option," Garcia said. "We know there are parents who want it but can't afford it, and we don't have the space to do this (the pilot program) at every school. So the next step will hopefully be people helping us lobby the lawmakers to make full-day kindergarten a reality for every kid out there."

That could backfire, said Martha Young, associate dean of the College of Education at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

"This could actually take away some parental support if people feel they're being used as political pawns and resent it," Young said Wednesday. "The underlying message is that if you're very poor the district will help you, and if you're very rich the district will help you, but if you're the 80 percent in-between you need to rally around the flagpole in Carson City."

Because children are not required to attend kindergarten to proceed to first grade, the district's pilot program isn't much different from the extracurricular clubs or summer enrichment classes already offered for an extra cost, Young said.

There have been a wealth of studies conducted that show the benefits of full-day kindergarten programs over the 2 1/2 hours typically offered, Young said. The hurdles for school districts across the country -- including Clark County -- have been finding the money to pay for teachers and the space to house the classrooms.

"This isn't a question of whether this (the pilot project) will help students -- I'm sure it will," Young said. "The real concern is whether the district will be creating a group of haves and have-nots. Public education is supposed to be about equal access."

As part of the pilot program, 10 Clark County elementary schools will begin offering full-day kindergarten classes for $300 a month. The schools were selected based on the availability of classroom space and parental interest.

The district already offers half-day kindergarten classes at most schools. Until now full-day programs have been limited to the district's poorest schools which use federal Title I dollars to pay for the classes.

Thanks to a new federal formula for calculating aid, the district will receive extra Title I dollars for the 2004-05 academic year and add full-day kindergarten classes at 35 of its poorest schools.

Nevada's 17 school district superintendents lobbied heavily -- and unsuccessfully -- during the last legislative session for state-funded, full-day kindergarten for all students. The state currently funds a portion of the cost of offering half-day programs at some schools.

Gov. Kenny Guinn also promoted full-day kindergarten programs for at-risk schools during his 2003 State of the State address but, given the state's budget woes, his plan did not receive legislative support. Full-day kindergarten and increased education funding remain at the top of the governor's list for the 2005 session, said his spokesman, Greg Bortolin.

"The governor has said it was education that afforded him the opportunities he's had in his career," said Bortolin, noting that Guinn served as Clark County's schools superintendent from 1969 to 1978. "He most certainly believes the easiest and most practical way to diversify your economy and attract businesses to your state is to have a better-educated work force. And the earlier that education begins, the better for all of us."

Bortolin called it "sound strategy" by the Clark County School District to use the tuition-based kindergarten program as a motivational tool and to boost their case publicly.

"Plenty of states have full-day kindergartens across the board," Bortolin said. "The difference is their Legislatures fund it and ours doesn't. Perhaps if our lawmakers see this (the pilot program) making a difference somewhere down the road they will give it some consideration."

Nevada is one of 39 states that requires its school districts to offer at least half-day kindergarten programs, according to the Education Commission of the States, an informational and research clearinghouse. Nine states requires districts to offer full-day kindergarten programs. Only 13 states require students to attend kindergarten prior to first grade, and West Virginia and Louisiana require full-day attendance.

The Washoe County School District began offering a tuition-based full-day kindergarten for just one class at one school this year, that district's spokesman Steve Mulvenon. Parents pay $65 per week -- $40 less per month than what Clark County plans to charge. Washoe County officials are considering raising the price to $85 per week for the 2004-05 academic year although the size of the program will not increase, Mulvenon said.

Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, said he agreed that full-day kindergarten programs were essential to boosting overall student achievement. But the district's pilot program goes about it the wrong way, Perkins said.

"We're going to have the at-risk and the wealthy kids getting what they need and the middle class children are the ones left behind," Perkins said. "Anything we do to motivate parents to become more involved in the legislative process is a good thing, but the district's plan may end up alienating more people than it attracts."

At two district elementary schools, Lamping and Bilbray, there was enough interest from parents to support two full-day kindergarten classes.

Christine Freeze, whose son will attend the program beginning in August at Lamping, said she struggled with issue of giving extra money to a public school.

"It was a little tough for me to swallow," Freeze said. "I know the reasons why they (district officials) have to charge but I really wish this was available to everyone out there. I know I'm fortunate that the cost is within reach for my family."

Freeze said she knows several people who have signed up for the program because the district's fee of $300 is significantly cheaper than what some parents pay for day care. Students should only be enrolled in the program if they are emotionally ready for a full day of school, Freeze said.

"I worry that some kids may wind up doing it for the wrong reasons," Freeze said.

Lesa Almeido, whose daughter is a student in the morning kindergarten program at Lamping, said she wished the full-day program had been available this year.

"Two and a half hours just isn't enough time to get in the reading, the spelling, the math, all the things they need to know," said Almeido, who helps out in her daughter's classroom once a week. "I know the teacher would like more one-on-one time with students but with 31 kids in a classroom it's just not possible."

Almeido, who has two older children as well, said she has noticed the district's academic standards steadily rising for the lower grades.

"The demands on our kids are getting higher and higher, younger and younger," Almeido said. "That makes full-day kindergarten a necessity, not a luxury."