Keller ISD is seeking a partnership with a private or public entity in the community to provide full-day prekindergarten classes next year.
A public hearing for partnership proposals and feedback was held at the district’s Oct. 28 school board meeting. No one spoke at the hearing.
The drive behind this effort comes from a stipulation included in House Bill 3, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law back in June. School districts are now required to provide a full-day prekindergarten program for eligible students who are at least 4 years old, according to meeting documents.
The law went into effect Sept. 1, but KISD was not prepared to provide the program for all eligible students. While the district is considering proposals from child care providers, it will be filing a waiver with the Texas Education Agency for the 2019-20 school year, according to meeting documents. It plans to offer a full-day prekindergarten program in the 2020-21 school year instead.
At this point, the district has not received any proposals for a partnership, KISD staff reported at the Oct. 28 meeting.
In order to participate in the future program at no cost, students must be 4 years old before Sept. 1 of the school year and meet any of the following criteria, according to an Oct. 28 news release from KISD:
- Unable to speak and comprehend the English language
- Educationally disadvantaged (eligible for the National Free or Reduced-Price Lunch program)
- Homeless
- The child of an active duty member of the U.S. armed forces
- The child of a member of the U.S. armed forces who was injured or killed while on active duty
- Are or have been in the conservatorship of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services
- The child of a person eligible for the Star of Texas Award
Students who do not qualify for the free program may be able to participate by paying tuition, according to the news release.
All families can give input by filling out a survey to help the school plan for enrollment can be found
here. It will close Dec. 1.
