Southwest to add preschool in December
October 29, 2014
Charlea Mills
In an exciting announcement made by Southwest Schools, it was revealed that the school will be adding a preschool hopefully as early as late November or early December. The preschool was made possible by the Missouri Preschool Project Grant through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
Southwest was awarded $80,000 that is renewable for five years and goes to provide funding for the program through leasing a new modular building and adding a new teacher and possibly an assistant. According to Southwest Superintendent Bob Walker, the district will be supplementing the grant money with district funds to get the program running and continue it in future years.
Currently, the school has a Title I Preschool Program that has been in effect for over 20 years. Title I is a federally funded program that serves children who are three and four years old who have an educational need and meet the eligibility requirements. Wanda Smith, Director of Special Services for Southwest, stated that the program provides serves under special education laws. She said, “The number of children served varies due to eligibility or handicapping conditions within the district’s student population. We usually have around 10 Early Childhood Special Education (ESCE) preschool students.”
With the new grant funding, the new preschool will be able to serve up to 40 preschoolers, 20 in the morning and 20 in the afternoon. The school hopes to have enrollment start around December 1 of this year and have the preschool open by December 15.
When asked by the decided to apply for the grant, Walker stated, “Our intent is to better serve our community’s needs by providing additional four year-old preschool services for those who do not qualify for our ESCE program, and in this process, afford future kindergarten students an opportunity to arrive better prepared.”
He continued, “This program will make us more effective, as a quality preschool program can impact children’s foundational skills, both academically and socially. Concerning our community, besides providing a half-day child care option, the program will start establishing the all-important parent/school partnership a year earlier than is typical.”
Students in the preschool program will need to meet income guidelines as dictated by the grant requirements. THe weekly fee for the program will be based on a sliding fee scale where families with an income that is less than 200 percent of the 2014 Federal Poverty Guidelines will pay nothing. Families between 200 and 400 percent will pay $5 each week, and families making more than that will pay $10 weekly. For example, a family of four within the Southwest district would need to make more than $47,700 annually to be at 200 percent of the FPL and therefore have to pay for the program weekly.
The school stated that they will be advertising enrollment in the program in the newspaper, on the school marquee and will also be sending home information with their students for when enrollment will begin.
Charlea Mills
In an exciting announcement made by Southwest Schools, it was revealed that the school will be adding a preschool hopefully as early as late November or early December. The preschool was made possible by the Missouri Preschool Project Grant through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
Southwest was awarded $80,000 that is renewable for five years and goes to provide funding for the program through leasing a new modular building and adding a new teacher and possibly an assistant. According to Southwest Superintendent Bob Walker, the district will be supplementing the grant money with district funds to get the program running and continue it in future years.
Currently, the school has a Title I Preschool Program that has been in effect for over 20 years. Title I is a federally funded program that serves children who are three and four years old who have an educational need and meet the eligibility requirements. Wanda Smith, Director of Special Services for Southwest, stated that the program provides serves under special education laws. She said, “The number of children served varies due to eligibility or handicapping conditions within the district’s student population. We usually have around 10 Early Childhood Special Education (ESCE) preschool students.”
With the new grant funding, the new preschool will be able to serve up to 40 preschoolers, 20 in the morning and 20 in the afternoon. The school hopes to have enrollment start around December 1 of this year and have the preschool open by December 15.
When asked by the decided to apply for the grant, Walker stated, “Our intent is to better serve our community’s needs by providing additional four year-old preschool services for those who do not qualify for our ESCE program, and in this process, afford future kindergarten students an opportunity to arrive better prepared.”
He continued, “This program will make us more effective, as a quality preschool program can impact children’s foundational skills, both academically and socially. Concerning our community, besides providing a half-day child care option, the program will start establishing the all-important parent/school partnership a year earlier than is typical.”
Students in the preschool program will need to meet income guidelines as dictated by the grant requirements. THe weekly fee for the program will be based on a sliding fee scale where families with an income that is less than 200 percent of the 2014 Federal Poverty Guidelines will pay nothing. Families between 200 and 400 percent will pay $5 each week, and families making more than that will pay $10 weekly. For example, a family of four within the Southwest district would need to make more than $47,700 annually to be at 200 percent of the FPL and therefore have to pay for the program weekly.
The school stated that they will be advertising enrollment in the program in the newspaper, on the school marquee and will also be sending home information with their students for when enrollment will begin.