The Juneau School District is looking to turn a projected budget decrease into funding for preschool education.
The October student count revealed that the District has 123 fewer students than projections from last spring, according to a memo from the JSD Director of Administrative Services David Means. Lower enrollment, Means explained in the memo, means that there will be less state funding. Means projected a $726,277 decrease in state funding as a result.
It also means that the maximum amount of money that the City and Borough of Juneau can give to the school district is diminished. According to Means’ memo, the CBJ’s maximum appropriation to the school district will decrease by $167,500 in the 2018 budget.
At their meeting Tuesday night, the members of the Board of Education wrote up a request to the CBJ Assembly to invest that $167,500 in early childhood education. According to a Wednesday memo from Means, this appropriation would be appropriate according to an official from the Department of Education & Early Development.
As JSD Superintendent Mark Miller explained during Tuesday’s meeting, the CBJ has already planned on allocating the maximum possible amount to the school district (usually referred to as funding to the cap) in its 2018 budget.
“Now the question to CBJ is, ‘Since you’ve budgeted it already, how do you feel about allowing us to use that outside the cap for preschool?’” Miller said at Tuesday’s meeting.
Representatives from the District, including Means, presented the idea at Wednesday night’s CBJ Assembly Finance Committee meeting. The earliest that the Assembly could appropriate these funds, according to the school district’s estimation, is its Feb. 12, 2018 meeting.
Multiple members of the Finance Committee said they would like to have more time to consider the request, as Miller told them Wednesday that it wasn’t absolutely necessary to make any kind of decision right then.
“I would like to have the opportunity to talk with some of the board members,” Deputy Mayor Jerry Nankervis said, “before I make any decision about whether that’s an appropriate avenue to put that money in.”
Where the money might go
The school district currently runs three pre-kindergarten programs serving 57 students, according to materials from Tuesday’s meeting. Children House, part of Montessori Borealis School, serves eight 4-year-olds. Integrated Pre-school Peers serves 30 4-year olds, including special education students. KinderReady is a program at Harborview funded by a state grant, serving 19 4-year-olds.
JSD also houses two Head Start classrooms, with one at Mendenhall River Community School and another at Sayéik Gastineau Community School.
Listed options for using the $167,500 in early education include adding a second KinderReady classroom, adding an option for students to attend a full day of KinderReady, developing an outreach program for parents and licensed daycare centers and assisting parents with tuition or student transportation. The memo from Means given to the Finance Committee on Wednesday night stated that the money would primarily go to the KinderReady program, which is currently supported by a state grant.
The Board of Education has identified early childhood education as a priority for the future, approving a resolution in May that stated that the board is in favor of fighting for more funding for early education.
A report at the board’s Nov. 14 workshop stated that just 135 of 351 (38 percent) students entering kindergarten this fall met the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development’s benchmark for readiness. This metric includes factors such as communications, literacy, motor development and more.
Board President Brian Holst said a request for this money fits with the board’s priorities, and Vice President Josh Keaton said he felt this would move the district in the right direction. Andi Story, the board’s clerk, concurred.
“I just feel like I do want to advocate for the money that they have budgeted for student needs to stay with the district if possible. …We have needs for early learning and I feel like it’s appropriate to ask,” Story said.
• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at 523-2271 or alex.mccarthy@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @akmccarthy.
