Agenda - 01-28-2010 - 2 - Laserfiche WebLink

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�1tt ich oew)+ s Staff Review of Universal Pre-Kindergarten Proposal At the Board of County Commissioners' Meeting on June 2, 2009, three members of the Orange County child care community read prepared statements endorsing a written proposal by the Orange County Child Care Coalition. The Coalition proposed county funded universal pre-kindergarten, phased in over five years with a total estimated cost of $10,800,000 and a recurring annual cost of $4,450,000 thereafter. The Coalition, acknowledging the county's difficult financial situation, asked that the county create an Early Learning Task Force to study the proposal and develop a report. The Board unanimously approved a recommendation by Commissioner Nelson to refer this request and related proposal to staff for follow-up. Following direction by the Board of County Commissioners, staff have met, reviewed, and discussed the Orange County Child Care Coalition's proposal for county funded universal pre-kindergarten. Although the issues and arguments presented in the referenced proposal are compelling, given the current demand on Orange County's finances, the ongoing investment in both school systems, and the current duplication and inefficiencies in child care subsidy funding for many of the same families that this program would target, staff recommends against funding the proposal at this time. As written the proposal would require a significant financial commitment from the county for both start-up and ongoing support. As previously mentioned, full implementation of the proposal would require an annual commitment of more than $4,000,000 based on funding 775 slots for Orange County four-year-olds. The actual costs could be significantly higher if more children participated, or if a higher number of low-income children participated. The proposal requires no parent in Orange County to pay more than 50% of the cost of care regardless of income. This $4,000,000+ annual commitment is all new county money and would cost more than $.03 on the annual tax rate. The Child Care Coalition's proposal recommends that private child care centers be used as classroom sites for universal pre-kindergarten, and that the program be managed by Child Care Services Association, a local nonprofit organization. If the county decided to fund universal pre-kindergarten, more exploration should be done on other options for implementation. The proposal also references universal preschool systems in other states. Many of these states utilize the local school systems in addition to private schools, private child care centers and faith-based child care centers to facilitate their preschool programs, relying on current infrastructures there, and making after school care and multi-child pickup easier on parents. The significant investment that the county already makes in both the Orange County and Chapel Hill Carrboro City School Systems would imply that they would be a good vehicle through which to manage such a program should the Board of County Commissioners decide to implement it. If county dollars are to be used to fund universal pre-kindergarten, the money should stay within the county to control. A collaboration of the two school systems and the Department of Social Services, which is the county's child care agency, would be one possible alternative.