While some parents expressed concern that all day kindergarten may be too much for young children, others at the district's public meeting to discuss the proposal which was held last week, praised the Island Trees administration for considering a full day program for kindergartners.

Although the goal of this meeting was to present the proposal to the community, it also provided those present with the opportunity to express their feelings about the plan for all day kindergarten, which the district administration has asked the board of education to make a decision about by January, and to ask any questions they might have.

Island Trees Superintendent of Schools Richard Segerdahl began the meeting by presenting an overview of the goal of all day kindergarten and spoke about why the district has chosen now to consider this proposal. Segerdahl noted that approximately 30 out of the 52 school districts in Nassau County are currently considering going to full day kindergarten. He went on to explain that this is something that the Island Trees administration has been considering for a few years and selected the coming year to try to implement because the state is currently providing one time transitional aid to help districts who go to an all day program. There is no guarantee, according to Segerdahl, that the transitional aid, which is provided through the state's Ladder Program, will be offered in future years. Through the Ladder Program the district would receive $1500 per child entering kindergarten next year in order to assist the district in preparing for this new program.

Following the superintendent's presentation, the principals from the two elementary schools and four current kindergarten teachers in the district spoke about why all day kindergarten would be beneficial to the students. Mary Modica, principal of Sparke Elementary School stated that she had previously been principal of a school that already had all day kindergarten and had found it to be a real benefit to the students. She noted that the children "adjusted beautifully" to being in school all day. She added that the biggest difference that she saw with the all day kindergarten was that the children were better prepared when they reached first grade. Modica said that the students were already reading by the time they reached first grade and she found that their socialization skills had improved.

Madeline Montone, principal of Stokes Elementary School, a former kindergarten teacher, noted that kindergarten is much different today than it was a few years ago. She explained that much more is expected of students as they move up the grades and the earlier children are prepared for the increased standards, the better off they are in the long run. She added that with all the new tests being mandated by the state, the teachers are trying to do so much in so little time and there is very little time for socialization. By increasing the length of the day for kindergarten students from half day to full day, teachers will be have more of an opportunity to interact on a one-to-one basis with the students and the children will have more time to interact with each other.

Sparke kindergarten teacher Debbie Mahler further expanded on how the children's socialization skills would be improved with an all day program, while Stokes kindergarten teacher Christine Roberts explained how the children would benefit in the areas of language arts and reading, Susan Reibel, another kindergarten teacher at Stokes, spoke about how the children's math and science skills will be helped, and Stokes kindergarten teacher Alison LaPersonerie discussed how the students would benefit from additional individualized instruction.

Following the teachers' explanations about the benefits of an all day program, Segerdahl then spoke about the mechanics of implementing this program for September 2001. When he had Deputy Superintendent Peter Egan speak about the transportation aspects of the proposal parents expressed concern about their 5-year-olds riding on the bus with older elementary school children. Segerdahl explained that they are currently considering different options concerning the buses, including the possibility of having the kindergarten children assigned to the front few rows of the bus so they would not be sitting with the older children.

As a few parents complained about the proposal Segerdahl noted that kindergarten is not mandatory and added that what the district is attempting to do is give the children the opportunity to further succeed in school. Other parents praised the district for considering this option, concurring that times have changed and a full day kindergarten program is the best way to prepare students earlier for the challenges they will face as they reach the higher grades.

One parent questioned whether the full day program would be initiated right away or if it would be phased in with students attending a slightly longer day as the school year goes on until they eventually worked their way up to a full day. Segerdahl stated that their plan was to do it all at once but added that they would consider the phase-in method as well. Throughout the meeting parents came up with different suggestions which the superintendent said they would keep in mind if the board approves the proposal and they begin planning for the coming year. Another parent questioned whether parents would have the option of sending their child to half day or full day kindergarten to which Segerdahl responded that it would have to be one or the other, the district could not provide both options. "We think it is in the best interests of the children to go to full day," said Segerdahl.

The superintendent has asked the board to make a decision by the January Board of Education meeting so that the additional costs of the program can be figured into the budget for the coming year.