The School Committee has unanimously approved Superintendent John Antonucci's proposal for full-day kindergarten, supporting district plans to make the transition this fall.
Parents at Thursday's School Committee meeting were pleased with the decision, applauding the committee and other school employees for the many hours and persistent effort put into making the proposal a reality.
"It's certainly a step in the right direction for Westwood," parent Mary Comber said. "It continues the record of wonderful education we have here."
Beginning this fall, kindergarten students will have the option to attend school for six hours and 20 minutes a day, with half-days on Wednesdays. The new model will cost the same as the current schedule of four hours and 45 minutes of instruction a day ($1,200).
Free half-day kindergarten will still be available.
By changing from the current four hour and 45 minute schedule, kindergarten students will be in sync with the rest of the elementary school, and have more time for creative learning opportunities, Antonucci said.
The kindergarten teachers are already considered full-time, Antonucci said, so parents will get more instruction for their children for the same cost. Also, he said, the new program won't require hiring any new teachers.
"This is something I'm very excited about," Antonucci said. "The amount of work involved in this was unbelievable, and I want to thank everybody for that."
The proposal presented to the School Committee stressed that the same curriculum will be taught to the students - they will simply have more time to spend on it. The additional hours allow for increased small group activity, better enrichment programs and more community bonding with peers and the rest of the school.
The decision to change to an official full-day model was something Westwood started looking at in 2006. Since examining other kindergarten programs across the state, weighing the potential benefits and obtaining a grant to fund the additional costs in 2007, the schools have worked to put this program in place for Westwood.
In other news, a plan was presented outlining the steps the schools would take in the upcoming months leading up to the start of school in September. A Program Development Committee will be formed, with Mary Brown, the Downey School principal, and Carol Craig-O'Brien, early-childhood coordinator, acting as co-chairwomen.
The committee will be visiting other full-day programs, as well as working with local universities with early-childhood education programs to help determine the best means of making the transition as smooth as possible for incoming students.
They will also work with teachers to determine professional development needs, hoping to begin training in the late spring and continue into the 2009-10 school year.
Program planning updates will be made to the school Web site for parents to read and give opinions as more decisions are made.
"We intend to still make sure that we address any concerns parents out there may still have," School Committee vice-chairwoman Barbara Delisle said.
Though excited about plans for full-day kindergarten, uncertainties in the budget for fiscal 2010 continue to be a major source of anxiety for both parents and school administrators.
Antonucci announced it is still unclear whether Gov. Deval Patrick will cut more local aid and if the schools will be receiving the projected revenue of $1.5 million from Westwood Station. Due to these contingencies, the School Committee has said it will postpone voting on an initial budget until members have a better idea of what's really going to happen.
"We are extremely adamant about getting money for our schools," Delisle said. "We fight all the time and we will advocate for what we can."
And while many parents at the meeting expressed concern over large class sizes for next year and expressed the need for additional classrooms especially in grades 1 and 5, Antonucci admitted at this point there is little the schools can do.
"People think we're immune to the pressures of this economy, but the truth is I think we're affected more," Antonucci said. "If people think it's going to be business as usual around here, they're grossly mistaken."
The School Committee will make a budget presentation to the Financial Committee on Monday, March 9.
