FULL DAY K TOPS THE MILLER PLACE BOE DISCUSSION

At last night’s MPUFSD BOE meeting, it was clear that people have strong opinions about whether or not the BOE should add Full Day Kindergarten (FDK) to the District. I support doing so but understand why some are opposed due to the financial sustainability questions that have not been satisfactorily resolved.

BOE President Doug Ports opened the meeting to remind the community that this was not the budget adoption meeting that was initially scheduled. The BOE budget adoption will take place Wednesday April 3. The adoption was postponed for two weeks to allow for more public discussion given that the second workshop meeting was canceled due to weather. And, yes, there was quite a lot of discussion!

Doug Ports then proceeded to list the items that were under consideration:

• The BOE understands that there are well-documented educational benefits of moving to FDK and that the majority of the community understands this. Some community members believe the benefits may be less.
• The BOE is aware that the benefits of FDK are difficult to determine past the third grade.
• The BOE is concerned about the fiscal sustainability of moving to FDK.
• The BOE is looking at whether bringing back programs, courses, clubs, etc. that have been cut over the years vs. adding FDK is a better use of resources.
• The BOE has been asked to add middle school cheerleading which costs about $6000.
• The BOE is looking at whether or not a FT certified librarian should be hired in the elementary school to replace the librarian who recently retired. Presently we have aids with degrees in library services but they are not certified librarians.
• The BOE has been asked to add an asst. coach for girls indoor track.
• The BOE has been asked to offer an SAT prep class.
• The BOE has been asked if beefing up security is a better use of founds than adding FDK.
• The BOE is carefully considering the long-term view when making short-term decisions because one cannot assume that state aid is going to get better and would likely get worse.
• The BOE is debating what to do with income from expiring debt. Should it roll over into the next budget for new initiatives or be “returned” to the community by decreasing the budget (lower taxes).

During the Public Be Heard portion of the meeting most spoke about FDK and most were supportive. Discussion continued for more than an hour! Here is my take from those that spoke:

Those that approve FDK:

1. Research shows that there are significant benefits of moving to FDK in the first few years of our children’s education. (I strongly agree. There is NO QUESTION about this!)
2. Teachers from other districts testified to these benefits and offered real-world evidence that was consistent with the large body of research. (These are the experts who do this for a living.)
3. Teachers from our own district spoke about how the new mandated Common Core curriculum will require more hours to be successful than half-day currently allows. (These are the experts who do this for a living.)
4. Teachers explained that comparing what our children did years ago in K vs. what they do today in K was an apples to oranges comparison. K today is much more rigorous.
5. FDK saves on scheduling and day care costs for parents. (Although true, this is probably not a good argument to use because it appears as though these parents are asking others to subsidize them. I suggest sticking to the academic merits of moving to FDK.)

Those that oppose FDK:

1. A few questioned whether there was evidence of an academic advantage of moving to FDK. (There is ample evidence of academic gain.)
2. Some claimed that their kids were successful and they went through half-day K.  (See point #4 above which shows why this is an unfair comparison today.)
3. It was mentioned that student success was more likely due to active parenting at home than increased early childhood education in the schools. (I agree to a point. Yes, a student with educators in the home or with parents who make education a priority does have an advantage. However, FDK would provide a large positive gain for those children who are not so fortunate. As a community we should help ALL of our children and not just our own.)
4. Several members were concerned about the fiscal impact of FDK and whether we might be forced to cut valuable programs down the road or raise taxes to keep supporting FDK. (THIS is the concern that SHOULD be front and center. #1,2,3 are, in my opinion, either groundless or very weak claims.)

Community member Danielle Atkins delivered a powerful message supporting FDK which I will briefly summarize here:

• is free for two years
• increases literacy
• produces more independent learning
• reduces transition time
• and that it is provided by 97% of districts in NY
• It also SAVES money.  According to the Economic Policy Institute and Committee for Economic Development, FDK generates returns of 3 to 1 or even higher.  This translates to $3 saved for every $1 invested by lowering rates of grade retention, remediation, and drop outs. The study can be viewed here.

A quick Google Scholar search appears to support this study. Unfortunately, it is much easier to see the cost (directly posted in budget) vs. the gains (not tracked nor listed in our budget).

Bottom Line:

The BOE has a difficult decision to make. They must weigh the academic gains of FDK (and perhaps more intangible financial gains) vs. the direct cost of supporting FDK down the road. Will moving to FDK cause tax increases and/or program cuts in the future that the community will not tolerate?

I personally support FDK and would be willing to pay for it but I fully understand those that oppose FDK for financial reasons. Taxes are high and getting higher and there are many in the community who do not have children and who are asked year after year to support our schools. (BTW, I will not have any children in K after this year.)

My gut instinct is that the BOE will not propose FDK in their budget this year but will reconsider next year. I have no inside knowledge of this – I am just guessing based on public comments from the BOE over the past few weeks.

I hope that as a community we will continue to communicate professionally with each other. We can agree to disagree – the backbone of democracy.

Speaking of democracy, long-standing BOE member Ann O’Brien is stepping down as of April 19. She received a standing ovation and several community members praised her commitment to the District. This means that there will be three (3) seats up for election this year. Those wishing to run must get their paperwork and 200 signatures in to Central Office by April 19. BOE President Doug Ports will not be running again which is unfortunate. He is doing a fantastic job as BOE President and will be greatly missed.