WELCOMEWELCOME To Our Pre-K Kickoff

Universal Pre-K Community leaders are paying attention to published statistical reports that show that 4 year olds in high quality preschool programs show the benefits of it in later years. They are less likely to need special education classes, and less likely to drop out of school. Yet, they are more likely to graduate from high school, and more likely to be responsible citizens and pay taxes.

Questions Who is eligible for UPK? Is UPK participation mandatory? Can a district give preference for enrollment to children who are from families that are economically disadvantaged? How can UPK accommodate homeless children?

What are allowable costs? Can facilities be leased? Can additional children be served with local dollars? What is an eligible agency? How can a library expand its services to include UPK for its Pre-k Services? Can a parochial school qualify as an eligible agency? Do eligible agencies have to be located in within the school district? What is student teacher ratio? Class size?

What standard must be followed when a UPK is governed by more than one agency? What is the collaboration requirement? What happens if there is no collaborating agency? Do collaborating agencies have to be in the same district? How do districts select collaborating agencies?

Policy President Obama has focused new attention on the importance of high quality early childhood education and its link to later student achievement and success in school. This federal support is demonstrated in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of More information about implementation will be released as it becomes available. In the current negotiations for the New York State budget NYSUT is advocating to maintain funding for UPK at FY levels ($452 million) for an additional two years.

Funding Streams UPK implementation in Every public school district in New York state received an allocation to establish or maintain a UPK program in A total of $36,295,570 or 14.6 percent of the funds were unexpended and returned to the state. A total of 275 districts returned 100 percent of their allocations. District reasons for returning UPK allocations included: lack of space, allocation insufficient to support a program start up, parent opposition, difficulty in including wrap around child care services, transportation problems, and uncertainty of continuation of state funding. To find your district’s UPK allocation for go to:

180 days per year or 90 days for mid year start up. Reporting is on BEDS day. Expansion of the current program is possible if a district has not applied for all of its funds in its initial application 5 days per week Screening required per part 117 of commissioners regulations. (details vary) Snacks /3 hours Meals/over 3 hours Program Design

Curriculum and Assessment Standardization is recommended but not required and is the responsibility of the district. There is no list of required or “approved”, or recommended tools. The Regulations require that the program adhere to uniform quality standards for all UPK classrooms including both district- based and eligible agency-based classrooms. The standards include: curricula aligned with State learning standards and with instruction in the early elementary grades of the district, effective and developmentally appropriate instructional strategies, a process for baseline and ongoing assessment of development of language, cognitive and social skills, screening for health and nutrition,

Staffing Section (e) –Teachers must hold a license or certification valid for service in the early childhood grades pursuant to Part 80 of this title. –As of 2008 teachers of CBO must meet the qualifications of the authority. Plan in place for certification Supervised by a certified on site education director that is required to be present during all UPK sessions

Professional Development Follow the professional development plan of the District. Include CBO’s when possible. Usually the district calendar accommodates the requirement for 180 student days.

Application UPK is an allocation grant meaning it is not competitive. Programs goals for 3 years Two or more districts may submit joint applications. Variances may be allowed for some requirements

The primary purpose of UPK is to provide four-year-old children access to high quality prekindergarten programs that prepares them for future school success by developing strong foundational skills in early literacy and numeracy. UPK programs must operate a minimum of two and one-half hours per day, five days per week for a minimum of 180 days per year. By law, the school year is defined as July 1st through June 30th. Therefore, a district could design its UPK program to operate for a minimum of 180 days, and include a schedule other than the tradition school calendar, including during summer and school vacation periods. The law requires that districts use a minimum of 10 percent of their UPK grant award to contract with one or more eligible agencies to collaborate in the provision of the instructional program for a specified number of enrolled children. These agencies are selected based on a competitive process established by the school district. Eligible agencies include child care and early education providers, day care providers, early head start and head start and CBO’s. Highlights of Universal Prekindergarten Program Requirements

United Way Districts UPK Head Start BOCES Allegany-Limestone Cattaraugus-Little Valley Ellicottville Franklinville Hinsdale Olean Schools Pioneer Portville Randolph Salamanca West valley