Next Friday, June 2, Patrick County school officials will look at Pre-Kindergarten applications to determine how many Virginia Preschool Initiative classes will be offered this fall. With the current enrollment numbers, the class number would be cut from five to three.
“We have a seen a decrease in the past three years, and this year is lower than we have seen in the past,” explained Andrea Cassell, Instructional Coordinator for Patrick County Schools. “I’m hoping there are some folks out there who have not registered and we can get our numbers up.”
Some years, she said, there were waiting lists for the VPI Pre-K — but not this year.
As of mid-May, there were 69 applicants for the 84 total slots. Of those 69 applicants, 43 met the admission criteria set by the Virginia Department of Education.
Funded by the state’s Lottery Proceeds Fund and by the local school budgets, the VPI program is designed to help at-risk 4-year-olds better prepare for Kindergarten.
After the June 2 decision, parents will receive letters regarding acceptance and site assignment. Pre-K enrollment is ongoing, but those who apply after June 2 will go on a waiting list.
“This has not been an easy thing,” Cassell said. “I don’t want families to think we’ve given up, because we have not. But we are having to think through ‘If these are our numbers, how do we provide Pre-K opportunities in our division with the resources that we have.”
For the 2016-2017 school year, Patrick County offered a Head Start/VPI blended classroom at Blue Ridge Elementary School. The other four Pre-Ks — Meadows of Dan, Stuart, Patrick Springs, and Woolwine — are VPI-only classes.
Local school systems use four VPI inclusion criteria for Pre-K admission:
* Is the family at or below 200 percent poverty level? For example, a family of four could make no more than $49,200 in gross income.
* Is the family considered homeless? Homeless means that the family lacks fixed, adequate housing, Cassell said. For example, when an adverse event leads a family to move in with a relative versus, that qualifies as “homeless.”
* Is one or both of the child’s parents a high-school drop-out? This applies to biological parents, Cassell explained, regardless of who has guardianship of the child.
* Is the family income less than 350 percent of federal poverty level and the student has special needs or disabilities. This could be as mild as speech services or occupational therapy, Cassell said. The key, however, is that the parent must have documentation, such as an Individualized Education Plan.
Students who meet one of the above criteria constitute 85 percent of classroom composition, Cassell said. The remaining 15 percent can be students with other risk factors that can make the transition to Kindergarten challenging.
Those risk factors include English as a second language, domestic or substance abuse in the family, foster care, having an incarcerated parent, having a parent deployed to military service, and being raised by relatives other than parents, Cassell explained.
All of the VPI Pre-K classes are full days, and follow a school schedule similar to that of older students. Parents have the option of bus transport for Pre-K students. If classes are cut to three, some Pre-K students may have a longer bus ride or a bus transfer, Cassell said. There’s also the possibility a van could be used.
But for now, she said, all transportation and class plans remain under discussion as officials wait to see whether more county 4-year-olds may be eligible. Parents interested in Pre-K may contact their district elementary schools for an application.
