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Full-time kindergarten costs rising
Published Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Area families can expect changes to next year’s Fergus Falls kindergarten offerings, including increased tuition for full-time students and a switch in the part-time schedule.
The Fergus Falls school board on Monday approved an increase in next year’s full-time kindergarten tuition, which will raise the monthly cost from $140 to $250. Families who qualify for reduced lunches will pay $100 a month, up from $50 last year. Those who qualify for free lunches can expect to pay $25 a month, up from no cost this year.
The board also approved a change in the district’s half-day kindergarten program, in which current students attend a morning or afternoon session five days a week. Next year, part-time kindergartners will attend school every other day for a full day; families can choose a Monday, Wednesday and every other Friday schedule, or a Tuesday, Thursday and every other Friday schedule.
The new part-time system, said Principal Scott Colbeck, is one of two models used in districts around Minnesota. The part-time kindergarten option is funded by the state and will continue to be free of charge.
The change, said Superintendent Jerry Ness, will eliminate the bus route in the middle of the school day and save the district $20-$30,000. Most districts in the area use the all-day, every other day schedule due to the cost of mid-day bussing, he said.
Advantages of the switch include access to music, lunch and recess — offerings not available to current half-day students, Colbeck said. Next year’s part-time kindergartners will also get to spend 30 minutes in McKinley Elementary’s SMART room, in which students complete exercises designed to enhance their reflexes, balance, and motor, auditory and visual skills.
Although students will no longer see their teachers every day, they will see more of them in the long run, Colbeck said.
“(Students) will actually be in school more next year if they go all day, every other day, as compared to this year if they go half day, every day,” he said.
Comments
The Daily Journal is happy to host community conversations about news and life in Fergus Falls and the surrounding area. As hosts, we expect guests will show respect for each other. That means we don't threaten or defame each other, and we keep conversations free of personal attacks. Witty is great. Abusive is not. If you think a post violates these standards, don't escalate the situation. Instead, flag the comment to alert us. We'll take action if necessary. It's not hard. This should be a place where people want to read and contribute -- a place for spirited exchanges of opinion. So those who persist with racist, defamatory or abusive postings risk losing the privilege to post at all.Posted by ffboyds (anonymous) on March 11, 2008 at 12:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
As I read the previous article on this topic, I saw so many comments ranting and raving about it. Do what I did, stop wasting your time reading them and go directly to the FF School District website, click on school board, and send them all an e-mail with your concerns. They are our elected officials, and blogging on the Journal's website isn't going to prove anything. Speak to them and let your voice and your concerns be heard in the correct form, directly to the school board officials.
Posted by c0nc3rn3d (anonymous) on March 11, 2008 at 1:57 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The legislature increased funding for kindergarten last session but has discovered that the money goes into the general fund and can be used for any purpose. The increase for the optional all day program obviously is one way the board has chosen to work toward a balanced school budget. The board has a tough job and the last thing you want to do is drive more students to other districts.
Posted by realitychk (anonymous) on March 11, 2008 at 5:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Like I mentioned in the last article. Pelican Rapids has all day, everyday kindergarten, and they have had it for years. Pelican Rapids has a very good program, and they don't charge anything for it. Since Underwood is filling up, Pelican is closer to FF than you think.
Posted by ffmomtoone (anonymous) on March 11, 2008 at 6:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If the school board isn't clever enough to compare public school all-day kindergarten prices to private school all-day kindergarten prices, why would e-mailing our concerns to them do any good? And if they did do the comparison but think it won't make a difference, then they're even bigger fools than many people perceive them to be. Let's sit back with them and watch the enrollment decline some more. It should be interesting to see what they come up with next.
Posted by OtterMom (anonymous) on March 12, 2008 at 12:02 p.m. (Suggest removal)
You're correct, ffboyd. The school board needs to be contacted directly. So ridiculous that tax payers have to pay for a young childs education in a public school system at all. I've witnessed many things that need to be looked at in this school system. Underwood, Rothsay, Pelican Rapids look better as each school day goes by. Sad.
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