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Wednesday, January 25, 2006
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— Time:
12:15:38 AM EST |
By DIANA BELL, Journal Staff Writer
MARTINSBURG - Berkeley County Schools continues to
make progress on the state goal of providing early
childhood education to all 4-year-olds by 2012-2013.
Dean Warrenfeltz, chairman of the county's
pre-kindergarten planning committee and Winchester
Avenue Elementary School principal, presented the
2006-2007 plan to the Berkeley County Board of Education
at its Monday night meeting. The board unanimously
approved the plan, with a motion by Pat Murphy and a
second by Todd Beckwith. It is due to the West Virginia
Board of Education and state Department of Health and
Human Resources by Feb. 17.
Each county must resubmit its original plan with any
revisions each year until full implementation in
2012-2013, according to Deputy Superintendent Frank
Aliveto. It's the fourth year of revising the original
plan, and Warrenfeltz's third year with the committee.
The committee is made up of Berkeley County Schools,
RESA VIII Head Start and DHHR representatives as well as
Miss Irene's Child Development Center, Child at Heart
Child Care Center and parents.
Counties must collaborate with existing
pre-kindergarten programs in the county, including
Regional Educational Services Agency VIII Head Start and
licensed child cares and private pre-kindergarten
programs unless those entities choose not to
participate.
The county is "on the right track" with the
initiative, Warrenfeltz said. "We've made a lot of
progress, but we have a long way to go," he added.
There are currently 356 pre-kindergarten students at
several locations. Those locations include Burke Street
Elementary School, Berkeley Heights Elementary School,
Pikeside Learning Center, Teacher's Pet Child Care
Center, Little Eagle Child Care and Miss Irene's Child
Care. Those classes will continue.
The 2006-2007 plan includes expanding the program to
Winchester Avenue Elementary School with one classroom
and at Child at Heart Preschool in Falling Waters. The
committee is also investigating a proposed RESA VIII
school in northern Berkeley County, which would be a
collaborative between Head Start and Berkeley County
Schools. Space for 260 additional students would be
available if those plans materialize.
Potential new sites for 2007-2008 include southern
Berkeley County schools such as Valley View Elementary
School resulting from redistricting and the opening of
Mountain Ridge Intermediate School.
The plan also must include updated projections of
4-year-olds in the county for 2010-2011. The total
projected number of 4-year-olds by then is 1,735, with
540 in the northern part of the county including
Bedington, Hedgesville and Marlowe; 760 in the central
part of the county, which includes the Berkeley Heights,
Burke Street, Opequon, Rosemont, Tuscarora and
Winchester Avenue areas and 435 in the southern part of
the county, which includes the Back Creek, Bunker Hill,
Gerrardstown, Inwood and Valley View areas.
Based on that projection, 36 to 43 classrooms would
be needed to serve all 4-year-olds, according to the
plan. Half of those must be in the school system and the
other half of those are required to be in community
facilities.
Warrenfeltz took questions from several board
members, including one from Beckwith about the number of
counties offering services to 100 percent of eligible
students. Warrenfeltz did not have the specific number,
but Superintendent Manny Arvon said he would estimate
only a handful are able to do that currently. Most are
able to provide services to 60 to 80 percent of
students, he added.
Besides the issue of space, funding is also a
concern, Arvon said.
Aliveto added that with the arrangement with Miss
Irene's, the school system is probably just breaking
even. There are two half-day classes, serving about 40
students. Because the classes are only half-day, the
state only provides funding for half the number of
students, he said.
Funding sources for this school year include about
$1.2 million from Head Start for collaborative
classrooms in the county; $56,880 in federal funding for
preschool special needs and about $1.5 million from the
school aid formula, according to the plan.
- Staff writer Diana Bell can be reached at 263-3381,
Ext. 127 or dbell@journal-news.net
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