School kicks off Wednesday for most Hawaii Island keiki, but spots still remain available for a new, federally funded program offering free pre-kindergarten classes to qualifying students at four island charter schools.
The state’s $14.8 million, four-year federal Preschool Development Grant will provide funding for 920 students in 18 charter school classrooms across Hawaii.
Students eligible for this year’s classes must have birthdates between Aug. 1, 2010, and July 31, 2011, and their family’s income must be at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for Hawaii — ranging between $13,550 for families of a single person and $47,010 for families of eight people.
Some charter schools in Hawaii have offered Pre-K classes before, but those were funded either through private providers or nonprofit organizations, said Tom Hutton, executive director of the State Public Charter School Commission.
Additionally, conversion charter schools, such as Laupahoehoe Community Public Charter School, which converted from a traditional Department of Education school, have been required to offer Pre-K classes for special needs children. But now, for the first time, some charter schools are making general education Pre-K available to residents.
The first year of the program will begin offering the classes at four charter schools on Hawaii Island, targeting areas with high numbers of low-income families, he said. They include Na Wai Ola Public Charter School in Mountain View, Laupahoehoe, Ke Kula ‘o Nawahiokalaniopuu Iki Laboratory Public Charter School in Keaau, and Ka Umeke Kaeo Public Charter School in Keaukaha.
“In general, there’s a correlation between income levels and outcomes. It’s not an exact formula, but there is a correlation there,” Hutton said. “There’s ample research showing the advantages, educationally, to children that are well-prepared by the time they get to kindergarten because they’ve had a high-quality preschool experience. We think the needs are very great among the students who could be served by our charter schools.”
Each of the four schools will offer the classes to no more than 20 students. The grant funds a teacher, an educational assistant, supplies and retrofitting of classrooms, Hutton said.
In the second year of the program, it will expand to two more schools in Hawaii County, and the third and fourth years will likely incorporate a total of 10 schools here.
The grant will serve to build an infrastructure for Pre-K in Hawaii, Hutton said, making it easier for the classes to be offered in the future.
“This grant enables Hawaii to continue making progress with its early childhood education system,” he said. “By creating more high-quality prekindergarten classrooms in addition to those already operating on Hawaii DOE campuses, our public charter schools are helping to ensure that more of Hawaii’s keiki get the good start they will need in kindergarten and beyond.”
Hawaii was one of only five states to be awarded a grant to open new preschool programs, as opposed to expanding current programs, according to a press release from the State Public Carter School Commission.
The new charter program complements the state DOE’s Pre-K program, which was approved by legislators in 2014 with an appropriation of $3 million. The DOE currently offers Pre-K classes at Honokaa, Hookena, Keaau, Keonepoko, Konawaena, Mountain View, Naalehu, Pahoa and Ka‘u High &Pahala elementaries.
Despite the newly instituted DOE program, only 56 percent of Hawaii’s 4-year-olds attended a program to prepare them for kindergarten, according to the charter commission’s application for the federal grant, which was submitted in October 2014.
Email Colin M. Stewart at cstewart@hawaiitribune-herald.com.