UPDATE: Batavia Parents Upset With Proposed Kindergarten Cut, School Board To Discuss In Nov.

Parents on Tuesday night spoke out against a  for students.

Six parents aired their concerns before the Batavia School Board and a crowded meeting room in the school district's main office.

The district's leaders recommend that the School Board discontinue the current Kindergarten After-School Enrichment Program for the 2012-13 school year. They argue that teachers need to focus on at-risk students, and they could do so in a newly developed, full-day kindergarten program.

Parents said many students, not just at-risk students, benefit from having a full-day kindergarten program.

“I’m really conflicted right now as to what to do," Parent Amy Hansen said. "I want my child to be in a structured environment. I don’t want her to be in day care. She’s ready to learn.”

The After-School Enrichment Program is a tuition-based program offered to kindergarten students. This program is the only way a kindergartener can receive a full day of learning in the Batavia public school system. The district currently offers a half-day program for all kindergarteners—parents elect either a morning-only sequence or afternoon-only sequence.

The district wants the School Board to vote on the program change at the regular Nov. 15 board meeting. School leaders need to begin publicizing the kindergarten offerings early in 2012, so the School Board would need to make a decision on the program before the end of the year.

School Board President Ron Link said at the end of meeting Tuesday that the Board might not even take a vote on the cut until after Nov. 15. Board members need to discuss the proposed changes in detail on that day.

What Parents Said

Tensions were high throughout the meeting room Tuesday night as the Board discussed the kindergarten program.

At the start of the night, parents shared strong opinions with board members. All of the speakers were opposed to the proposed kindergarten changes.

“We’d be moving in the wrong direction,” said Parent Robert Adams.

Adams said state figures show that more than 85 percent of Illinois schools offer full-day kindergarten options.

“If there isn’t an advantage to full-day kindergarten, why are so many schools offering it?” he said.

Other parents, like Christy Kulczycki and Amy Hansen, said they might consider putting their children in alternative programs, like , or in other private schools.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do at this point, because I don’t know what I’m going to be able to afford,” Hansen said after the meeting. “I think it’s going to be more cost effective to put (my daughter) in a parochial school. I’m a public school teacher. I don’t want to put my kid in a parochial school. … But it might be my only option.”

Questioning The Proposed Cut

Along with the parents, at least one board member appeared torn on the issue of eliminating the kindergarten offering.

“Why are we eliminating a program that’s highly popular with the public?” Board Member Jayne Resek said. “We had a program that the public was very happy with. The only time we had dissatisfaction was when .”

The district wants to change the kindergarten program so teachers can focus on at-risk students who need full-day programming and more personal attention. School leaders also argue that the benefits of full-day kindergarten for non-at-risk students .

The district defines at-risk children through literacy screening before kindergarten, at an , or by evaluating students who speak limited English through bilingual programming.

Last year 35 kindergarten students qualified as at-risk, said Kris Monn, assistant superintendent.

But Hansen said there is still a learning gap for some children who don’t qualify as at-risk.

“I took my kid to screening, knowing what I know as a teacher that he was at risk,” said Hansen, whose son is in first grade. “By their screening, he was not identified as at-risk. … I think the (learning) gap still exists for him, but I think it’s closer to being closed now because of full-day kindergarten."

Hansen also has a daughter who will be in kindergarten next year. She hopes her daughter can take full-day classes in Batavia Public Schools.

“I’m really struggling with this right now,” she said. “I picked Batavia specifically for the school district … but a lot of the reasons why I chose this school district are eroding away, mostly because of the economy."

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To read more about the district's recommendation to cut the full-day kindergarten enrichment program, click .