New federal grant allows for four-day Pre-K curriculum program

A new federal development grant will allow the Nye County School District to expand its Pre-Kindergarten and Early Childhood Special Education programs for the upcoming school year.

The $1.2 million dollar shot in the arm paves the way for a four-day-a-week program for children three, four and five years of age.

Prior to the new funding, the program was a half-day schedule.

The main purpose of the program is facilitating student readiness in the areas of arts, language and literacy.

Additionally, math, science, self-help, motor skills and socialization instruction are provided in a classroom setting with a low student-to-teacher ratio.

District Homeless Liaison Linda Fitzgibbons said that it will now give parents more flexibility in their tight schedules.

Enrollment for the upcoming fall semester is now underway.

“The biggest change is that we are now have pre-kindergarten at all of the elementary schools,” she said. “It has been a long process to get it up and running and it’s also been really exciting because the children that are zoned for their schools will start in a Pre-K classroom and then go right into kindergarten in their zoned school.”

Fitzgibbons also said the program comes with certain income guidelines for parents.

“The development grant is 200 percent of poverty and that’s how the income guidelines are determined,” she said. “You will hear us talk about free and reduced lunches where people qualify and that’s how our previous program qualified students. If they were on free and reduced lunch, then they would be qualified for it.”

Additionally, Fitzgibbons noted that the augmented program urges parental involvement.

“Our program requires that parents have at least four parenting classes or workshops throughout the entire year,” she said. “We are able to provide services to our parents where they can take those parenting classes.”

State of Nevada Education Program professional Teresa Cosgrove said parents should not see parental involvement as a requirement.

“It’s one of those variables that contributes to high-quality programming for children, which increases the likelihood of school readiness,” she said. “This is a way of bringing not just a child, but a family into the school system.”

The four-year grant, according to Cosgrove, must be matched with state funds.

“Every year, the state contribution increases while the federal contribution decreases,” she said. “When the federal grant does go away, hopefully the state will have prepared itself financially to pick this up so it will stay. That helps us with sustainability.”

Fitzgibbons, meanwhile, said the Pre-K curriculum was chosen by the Nye County School District.

“It is called ‘Little Treasures’ and it’s designed specifically for our Pre-K classrooms,” she said. “The nice thing about this grant is that it does allow the school district to make those determinations as to what curriculum they will be using. We also use everyday math, which is aligned with all of the rest of the school district.”

A birth certificate and current shot record must be presented upon enrollment, while a social security card is recommended.

To enroll or for additional information call 775-727-1875.

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes