West Orange Committee Gives Update On State-Funded Preschool Plan

WEST ORANGE, NJ — “Meaningful progress” has been made on the effort to bring a state-funded preschool program to the West Orange Public School District, a committee says.

As part of a Tuesday letter to the community, Interim Superintendent C. Lauren Schoen said the district’s Preschool Expansion Committee has provided a new update, which can be seen online here.

Schoen said a formal presentation on the topic is scheduled for the Monday, May 23 board of education meeting. Read More: NJ Is Committing To Universal Pre-K For All, Gov. Murphy Says

According to the committee, its members have been meeting monthly since October.

“We have been making meaningful progress and are moving forward with the necessary steps in order to be eligible to apply for state funds when the application opens in July 2022,” the committee wrote.

The goal is to provide preschool programming for 90 percent of the district’s 3-year-old and 4-year-old general education population within the next five years – at “no cost to parents.”

If awarded preschool expansion aid, the district’s aim is to begin the first year of preschool programming in the fall of the 2022-2023 school year, the committee said.

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