Study: Parents will pay for full kindergarten

By Emily Richmond (contact)

Monday, May 16, 2005 | 10:58 a.m.

With enough interest from parents willing to foot the $300-a-month bill, the Clark County School District's tuition-based kindergarten program is expected to more than double in size for the 2005-06 academic year.

As part of a pilot study launched in August, 12 schools offered parents the option of paying for their child to attend a full-day kindergarten class, instead of the half-day program offered districtwide. The study was carried out at schools in more affluent areas that do not qualify for the federally funded full-day kindergarten program.

With the district's annual kindergarten enrollment period now complete, 26 schools are expected to have at least one tuition-based classroom.

"What we're hearing from parents is that there's so much evidence of the benefits that they're willing to pay for it," said Walt Rulffes, the district's deputy superintendent of operations. "We'd love to be able to offer it for free to all our families, but until that time comes this is the next best thing."

There's no profit made on operating the classrooms, Rulffes said. The tuition helps pay teacher salaries, building costs and utilities.

Pushing the Legislature to fund full-day kindergarten statewide is a major component of the iNVest '05 plan, a $646 million package of education initiatives proposed by the state's 17 school superintendents. Democrats have also made full-day kindergarten a legislative priority.

In order for a school to sign on to the pilot study, there had to be available classroom space with a minimum enrollment of 22 students. The district's northwest region, which includes Summerlin, leads the list with 10 schools planning to offer the program.

"We've been able to fill our programs very easily," Carla Steinforth, northwest region superintendent, said.

Several schools have waiting lists, Steinforth said.

Region administrators have been evaluating the progress of students in the full-day, tuition-based kindergarten program versus those in half-day classes, Steinforth said. Students in the full-day program receive 310 instructional minutes, compared with 150 minutes in the half-day program. That increase is clearly making a difference, Steinforth said.

On a skills assessment in January, 47 percent of the full-day students were already scoring at "12," the level they were expected to reach at the end of the academic year, Steinforth said. And just 5 percent of the full-day students scored lower than an "8" on the mid-year test, Steinforth said.

Steinforth said she didn't have exact numbers but said students in half-day programs also showed progress when tested in January. She said the growth was "much more dramatic" for the full-day kindergarten students.

"We've seen substantial gains," Steinforth said. "That's what happens when you have more time for reading, more time for writing instruction and teachers don't have to cut projects and activities short."

The southeast region, including Henderson, has eight schools signed on for the program. Lamping Elementary School, which currently has two tuition-based kindergarten classrooms, will increase to four in August. And Glen Taylor Elementary School will add a second tuition-based classroom.

The southwest region has three schools signed on and the northeast region two.

In the east region there hasn't been enough interest from any school to meet the enrollment requirement.

School Board member Sheila Moulton, whose district includes the east region, said she's encouraging administrators to consider opening a "hub" school that would offer the tuition-based kindergarten classes to surrounding campuses.

"We need to think creatively and make sure we're offering these opportunities to everyone we possibly can," Moulton said. "I don't want to see any of our families or kids miss out."

One east region principal, Suzzie Bragg of Goldfarb Elementary School, said only seven parents mailed back surveys indicating they were interested in a tuition-based kindergarten class.

One reason may be the cost, Bragg said. But the school also has many families with a "stay-at-home" parent, Bragg said.

"To a lot of them, the quality time they have with their children is better than paying $300," Bragg said. "I certainly respect that, but I also believe in the long run children benefit from full-day kindergarten."