SOLANA BEACH — Solana Beach School District leaders plan to implement an early education program for local four-year-olds in the fall, with further details about eligibility and the number of classrooms to be determined next month.
The district board met Tuesday to review details and costs for the planned pilot program, known as the Jumpstart Program, and discuss recommendations compiled from an early education steering committee of administrators, teachers and parents formed last year.
District leaders emphasized at the meeting that the Jumpstart Program is not transitional kindergarten as required and defined by the state but an early education program intended to better prepare students for elementary school. Unlike TK, at least in its first year, Jumpstart will not be open to all four-year-olds.
While California requires all elementary school districts to offer TK as a precursor to regular kindergarten for all four-year-olds by 2025-26, Solana Beach is one of a handful of basic aid districts that says they are exempt from this requirement because they don’t receive additional state funding to accommodate more students.
“Because the Solana Beach School District is community-funded, we don’t receive an apportionment from the state, so therefore it’s not required of community-funded districts,” said Mark Pong, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services.
“However, the board regularly demonstrates that we’re committed to the success of each and every student, so we recognize that there are students across the district who would benefit from a two-year kindergarten program in the Solana Beach School District.”
Estimated costs for a single classroom in the program are around $60,000 for startup, including materials and curriculum, and $222,000 annually for ongoing costs, including personnel. The board agreed with the steering committee’s recommendation for a ratio of two adults per 24 students.
Staff said the program would be paid for out of the General Fund, using leftover money freed from declining enrollment.
SBSD leaders recommended a limited program of one to three classrooms prioritizing high-need students. This would include those from low socioeconomic backgrounds, English language learners, and others who qualify for the state’s Extended Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP).
The exact number of children that would qualify under this criteria is unknown. Kim Pinkerton, the district’s executive director of special education, said the district identified around 60 children that would be eligible based on responses to a survey sent out to district families.
After prioritizing these students, staff said any remaining seats could be filled via a lottery.
Board members expressed concern about using a lottery, noting that it would inevitably leave some students without the opportunity for free early education.
“If you offer a seat in a specific program that you cannot offer to all, we’re going to have some feedback from our community about that,” said Board President Debra Schade.
Board Member Katie Süel recommended that the district talk with other schools that have utilized a similar system. Despite the potential challenges of a lottery, she said she does not want to see empty seats in a classroom.
“I think once we are paying to have the teachers in the classrooms, we should fill up the seats,” Süel said.
The Del Mar Union School District, which also claims to be exempt from state TK requirements, adopted a limited TK program last month focusing on high-need students. However, a board majority agreed not to open seats to the general population.
Board members said they would like a better idea of how many students would utilize the program in Solana Beach before making any decisions about the number of classrooms. Staff agreed to survey more families to collect more data.
The board will consider and vote on a more formalized recommendation for the program at their March 14 meeting.
