Sumner School District Expands Free Full-Day Kindergarten to Four Elementary Schools

Four of Sumner School District's eight elementary schools will be offering free full-time kindergarten to families who live in those school boundaries for the upcoming 2013-14 school year.

According to an announcement from the district Tuesday, Bonney Lake Elementary and Emerald Hills Elementary now join Daffodil Valley and Liberty Ridge in providing the full-day option.

The district in March had announced it was reinstating full day kindergarten for the latter two schools after securing local funding but officials were watching the Legislature to see when they might be able to move to full-time kindergarten for all elementary schools by 2018.

The decision in the 2013 special session of the Legislature still prioritizes schools with the highest needs so Daffodil Valley and Liberty Ridge are the first to receive state funding. The District is now able to use local levy dollars to support full-day kindergarten at Bonney Lake and Emerald Hills elementary schools. 

Superintendent Dr. Sara E. Johnson says, “We can now expand our full-time kindergarten classes on an accelerated schedule, giving our youngest learners additional instructional time.” 

Early learning is a top priority in the Sumner School District. “The transition to full-day kindergarten is critical as we implement Common Core State Standards which are more rigorous than prior targets for student achievement," she said.

District leaders regret the short notice of the announcement to families, said district spokesperson Ann Cook, but they believes this will be good news to most students and families. "It's the right thing to do for the kids," she said.

Enrollment in free full-time programs at Bonney Lake, Daffodil Valley, Emerald Hills, and Liberty Ridge is limited to students residing within these school attendance boundaries.  These schools will no longer offer a part-time (red or blue) kindergarten program. Other elementary schools in the District offer part-time and tuition-based full-time programs.

Families were alerted Friday of the change and refund checks for any tuition already paid were also distributed last week, Cook said. "People who were already registered for full-time, they don't need to do anything. Parents on the part-time option will move to full-time and they don't need to do anything for that."

A small number of people who don't live in the schools' attendance areas but have approved waivers will still need to pay tuition, she said.

Kindergarten registration materials are available at all elementary school offices or on the District Web site at www.sumnersd.org.