This week, the Park City School Board expanded the district’s preschool program for 4 year olds for next school year, a decision that will cost the district just under $1 million.

District administrators Dan Gallery, Stacey Briggs and Todd Klarich presented the expansion plan Tuesday night to the board.

Gallery said that two classrooms will be added to the program at both Jeremy Ranch and McPolin elementary schools.

Earlier in the meeting, Chief Operations Officer Mike Tanners said construction at both schools is on track to finish by summer 2024.

After soliciting community feedback through a survey sent out a few weeks ago, he said, responses came quickly from families eager to discuss their preschooler needs: 86% of respondents, or 271 out of the survey’s 316 participants, indicated they needed five full days a week of preschool or five full days, as well as after care.

“We got that feedback after 72 hours,” Briggs said. “We didn’t have to hound anyone for it. They were like, ‘We need you to know this is what we need.'”

Gallery said preschool enrollment opens in January first to families with an employee in the Park City School District, families already in the program, and community partners such as the Christian Center of Park City.

In February, other members of the community can register so long as they are within Park City School District boundaries.

“Families want five days,” Gallery emphasized. “They want the extended day and they want it district wide.”

Along with adding four classrooms to the program, they proposed five days a week from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and after-school care from 3 to 6 p.m. 

This, Gallery said, would necessitate a handful of additional staff members, as well as an increase in paid hours to existing employees.

“Students will receive high-quality preschool programming until 3 p.m. and an enriched continuation of the school day provided by Community Education until 6 p.m.,” a slide on the group’s presentation explained.

Gallery said the positive outcomes of the expansion will better help prepare students for their primary education and assist students with disabilities.

The expansion’s price tag is just under $1 million, and the district plans to split the check with the Park City Education Foundation, a $25 raise in preschool tuition at the highest level of the sliding-scale cost and — potentially — Park City taxpayers. 

For the 2023-24 school year, Gallery said, the program totaled over $1.23 million. Tuition and the Education Foundation cover $508,000 of that expense, while the district itself allocates $726,000.

With the program’s planned expansion, the total cost inflates to almost $2.27 million. He said that leaves the district to allocate $947,000 and tuition and the Education Foundation to cover just over $1.32 million.

When board members discussed how the district would come up with the additional $400,000 or so the plan would require from them, business administrator Randy Upton said it may come through a tax raise.

“The way taxes have gone the last couple years, you may be able to just maintain the rate,” he said.

Depending on next year’s state legislative sessions, he added, Gov. Spencer Cox’s recommended 5% increase to the state’s spending-per-student might help take care of the funding gap.

Board member Anne Peters specified with Gallery that the expanded program won’t necessarily end the lottery families need to enroll their children in the preschool program, though it will open more spots for families who want their students to attend.

Board member Nicholas Hill asked presenters about another possible future increase in costs when the expansion spreads to the district’s preschool program for 3 year olds.

“Do we have an idea what that budget ask is going to be?” he asked.

“We do not, yet,” Briggs replied. “What we have been trying to figure out is how we’re not sitting in front of you next December.”

She said the group plans to continue working on the plan to expand the 3-year-old program and present it to the board in time for the next year’s budget.

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