Expansion proposed for Amherst Pre-K
The principal of Windermere Boulevard Elementary Childhood Center provided the Amherst School Board on Tuesday a proposal to expand the district’s prekindergarten program for the 2008-09 school year.
Enrollment for Amherst’s universal prekindergarten program this year was 141. Childhood Center Principal Mary Lavin told the School Board that the district qualifies for enough funding to expand to 164 in 2008-09.
Lavin said the district is eligible for $445,455 in aid through state Education Universal Pre-K grants to fund the program this year and encouraged the board to take advantage of the available funds to increase the program, which has grown steadily since its inception in 2004.
To accommodate the additional pupils, Lavin asked the board to approve a volunteer committee to review bids from preschools and nursery schools in the district to identify new sites to expand the program.
The committee, comprising two teachers, two parents and the universal prekindergarten coordinator, will visit child care providers and select suitable locations for the program, Lavin said. “I believe that we need to take advantage of the funding that the state has provided us with to expand this program and provide opportunities to more 4-year-olds in the district,” she said.
The board unanimously approved Lavin’s request to explore additional sites.
The pre-K program is housed at Windermere Boulevard Elementary School and at Amherst Community Church Child Care Center at no cost to district taxpayers.
“Because we have received such a positive response from the community, I think we need to take this opportunity to grab this funding while it is available and expand the program,” Lavin said.
Lavin said more than 130 pupils already have been registered for the upcoming school year and the growing demand for pre-K may force the district to start a waiting list.
The School Board also received a construction update from Business Administrator Gregory Kern, who did not attend but provided a written review on the status of projects.
Kern said flooring work at Smallwood Elementary School is to begin in late June and should be completed by Aug. 1. Most other work, including roofing and electrical projects, will begin this summer, with work at the high school to begin once Regents exams are done.
