Pre-K to have 40 children

Katie Rhine was named director and lead teacher of the new pre-school program of Pea Ridge Schools.

Rhine, currently a teacher in the Intermediate School, will transfer to the Pre-K program. Her transfer was approved by Pea Ridge School Board members at the regular board meeting Monday night.

Two pre-kindergarten classrooms will open this fall with a total of 40 spots. Twenty of those spots are paid for by a $100,000 Endeavor grant and are part of the Arkansas Better Chance (ABC) pre-kindergarten program. They are for families who meet a state-mandated financial guideline. The other 20 spots will be tuition based and parents will pay a weekly fee. The cost is as yet undetermined, but will be comparable to pre-schools in the area, according to school officials.

Applications will be available March 16 and can be picked up at any school office or downloaded from the school web site. Children must be 4 years of age by Aug. 1. Martin will begin accepting applications at 8 a.m. Wednesday, April 1. Students will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Applications will be time-stamped as they are received.

Martin will also be at the Primary School this week during parent-teacher conferences to hand out packets.

“Parents need to be sure the packets are complete,” Keith Martin, assistant superintendent, said. “We can not hold a spot for an incomplete packet.”

Items required are similar to what is required for kindergarten and include birth certificate, immunization record, proof of residency and proof of income. A list is available on the school web site.

“We’ll have certified teachers and aides,” he said.

“We will be offering a quality product,” Martin said. “Our goal is to prepare those kids for when they walk into kindergarten.

“We’re working with kindergarten teachers to be sure we’re

on pace,” he said. “… so we can get them ready to go to school and learn social skills.”

“It gives parents an additional choice; even if you have to do a paid slot, it gives you a reasonable financial choice as well.”

Martin said there are predicted to be about 70 children living in the Pea Ridge School District who qualify for the ABC program, according to state data information gathered from the free and reduced lunch program numbers.

The classrooms will be in the professional development center behind the Intermediate School and will be remodeled this spring.