Schalmont hopes to start a Pre-K program in September 2025, Superintendent Dr. Thomas Reardon told the Board of Education Monday, as long as state funding remains steady.

Presenting the work of the Pre-K Advisory Committee, Dr. Reardon explained Schalmont was able to create a plan for a Pre-K program thanks to the group’s exhaustive efforts over the past year. But Dr. Reardon noted ensuring the cost does not impact other student opportunities is the main focus.

“The question is can we build a Pre-K program while continuing to offer a robust program for our K-12 students,” said Dr. Reardon. “We believe we can but we will know better when state aid projections are released in January.”

While New York State provides funding for Pre-K programs, it would not cover the full cost. Dr. Reardon outlined a plan to start the Pre-K program with three classes at the former Woestina Elementary School for 54 students.

The Pre-K Advisory Committee looked at creating a larger Pre-K program but with an estimated $2.9 million cost, they recommended starting the program smaller to reduce the cost to $1.4 million while allowing Schalmont to gauge community interest.

The main cost driver is personnel as the program would require a teacher and teacher assistant in each class as well as clerical, nurse, security, cleaning, kitchen and supervision. While many districts rely on an outside group to run their Pre-K programs, the committee felt strongly that it should be run by Schalmont faculty and staff.

Dr. Reardon and the Board agreed. “I think we’ve learned that if we want to do it right, we need to do it ourselves,” said Board member David Lawrence.

The program would run approximately 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Transportation would not be provided due to cost and challenges such as car seats and a state requirement for Schalmont to then transport to all private Pre-K programs.

More details can be found in the presentation, available here.

While Dr. Reardon said the district wants to confirm state aid projections before starting to register students, interested families are welcome to email him at treardon@schalmont.net so Schalmont can start to gauge interest.

Schalmont families can expect an announcement in a few months, when the first state aid projections are released, about whether the district will move forward with the Pre-K program.