Armstrong Full Day Kindergarten Will Hold Lottery

The snow is finally melting, temperatures are climbing, and to most people the start of the next school year is not top of mind. Yet families with children who turn five by September 1 have been busy signing their children up for kindergarten for the 2011-2012 school year. 

The number one question on the minds of many of these parents is “Will there be a lottery for a full-day?” This year there was both good news and not-so good news for those parents and it all boiled down to district. 

At this week's School Committee meeting, assistant superintendent Daniel Mayer announced that only would require a kindergarten lottery. The lottery will be held on Wednesday, March 23 at 10 a.m.  

Mayer specified that the lottery will continue to be a reverse lottery, so that the eight names picked will be the eight names placed on the full-day wait list. Mayer added that these families also have the option of placing their child in a full-day kindergarten classroom at either or schools, providing they can supply their own transportation. 

Mayer told Westborough Patch that there are 223 kindergarten students registered for 2011-2012, which is very similar to the number registered last year. He said that about 25% choose the half-day program, while the balance choose full-day.

At the meeting, Mayer noted that class size is expected to be 19 students or below at each school, explaining that this is a lower number than the past few years when kindergarten classes hovered around 22 to 23 students.

The 2011-2012 school year will see three full-day and one half-day classrooms at both Hastings and Fales schools, and two half-day classes at the Armstrong school.

The full-day kindergarten program will cost $3,200 for the 2011-2012 school year, a slight increase over last year.  There is no cost for the half-day program.

Mayer said that the school administration accepts kindergarten registration through late February “so that when we present our budget to the School Committee, we can have a fairly accurate picture of whether or not we need to request additional funds to keep class sizes at reasonable levels.” 

He added that generally the office receives a flurry of applications, followed by a trickle of applications, and then some more that stream in during the last few days before the deadline. 

Families were evenly divided in their method of submitting their paperwork. One-third drop them off at the schools, one-third drop them off at the administration building, and another one-third mail them.

Westborough Patch was curious about what happens to families who miss the deadline or who move to town past the deadline.  Mayer explained, “They may not be allowed to place their child into a full-day program, but they will definitely get a space in our half-day program.”