Board Of Education Approves Full-Day Kindergarten For September

WAYNE, NJ - The Wayne Board of Education approved putting in full-day kindergarten into next year’s district budget after months of lobbying by residents and a failed vote in November,

The board voted 6-2 in favor of the addition.

The program will begin in September, but the associated costs must keep the budget under the state-mandated 2 percent increase cap.

Tracy Rozansky, one of the parents who spearheaded a grassroots effort to get full-day kindergarten into the district, said she was “beyond overjoyed” of the decision.

“I’m almost in disbelief,” Rozansky said Thursday night in a post in a Facebook group created in favor of full-day kindergarten. “Thanks to those that spoke tonight and the dozens of meetings throughout the year.”

In November, residents voted down bringing full-day kindergarten to Wayne 5,048 to 4,455. If approved, the referendum would have increased school taxes $65 this year to raise the $2.1 million needed to implement the program.

Poll workers at John F. Kennedy Elementary School and George Washington Middle School allegedly commented and made snide remarks to residents on how they should have voted on the referendum Nov. 3.