Bloomfield will revisit full-day kindergarten next year

Although the Bloomfield School Corporation opted out of full-day kindergarten this school year, the option will again be revisited for the 2008-09 year.

Superintendent Dan Sichting explained that this year the state appropriated $666 per student enrolled in full-day kindergarten. But the estimated cost of full-day kindergarten per student is $4,081.

To fund the program, schools are required to make up the difference using the general fund or Title I fund money, he noted.

"The problem is because we are not a Title I school we can only use Title I funds for Title I students," Sichting said.

If general fund money is used to supplement the program another sort of problem arises, he noted.

"If we use general fund money then the Title I students are eligible for their fair share (of general fund money). It is difficult to co-mingle Title I funds and the general fund," Sichting explained. "The only other option you have is to supplement (full-day kindergarten) with a fee."

If willing that fee could be funded in part by parents of students in full-day kindergarten, he said. But results from a survey concerning full-day kindergarten indicated that parents were not willing to pay.

"We had surveyed this year's kindergarten class last spring ... overwhelmingly they (parents) said no," Sichting said. "We will revisit full-day kindergarten this spring."

Parents will again be surveyed on their willingness to pay a fee, he said. But the state appropriation for the 2008-09 school year is set to increase.

"Next year the state is providing more money, but at the same time there are more schools that will offer full-day kindergarten," he said. "I'm guessing it (state appropriation) will be around the $1,000 mark (per student)."

But the implementation of a full-day kindergarten program at Bloomfield Elementary School would also require the hiring of two full-time teachers, he said.

"To add two teachers would be $110,000," Sichting explained. "If funding is $1,000 per student and you have 70 students that's $70,000 ... we're short. The question is where do you make that up?"

Another problem is that the anticipated increase in full-day kindergarten funding for the 2008-09 school year is not officially set, he said. The dollar figure is going to grow but the uncertainty of the funds is still going to remain.

"I anticipate two things happening. Number one, more schools will get into the full-day kindergarten program ... also schools already in full-day kindergarten may expand and offer full- day kindergarten to more students."

The amount of the increase is largely dependent on how many schools offer the program as well as how many students are enrolled at those schools, he noted.

"When you are in charge of a school budget it is kind of a blind leap of faith because you're not sure what your funding is going to be," Sichting said. "Again, there is a chance that the funding per student could be smaller."