Pacific Grove Unified to expand state preschool, add summer‑birthday children at Forest Grove Elementary

Pacific Grove Unified officials told parents at a community meeting that the district will expand its state preschool program to include children whose birthdays fall between June 3 and Sept. 1 and will move the current state preschool from David Avenue to Forest Grove Elementary.

The district said the Forest Grove preschool will mirror the transitional kindergarten (TK) schedule as closely as possible — about 8:40 a.m. to 1:55 p.m. — provide free snack and lunch, align curriculum with TK and connect students to on‑site wraparound services including the Monarch Club before‑and‑after‑school program. Barbara Martinez, principal of Pacific Grove Adult Education and longtime district preschool leader, said the change is designed to give summer‑birthday students a pathway into the district’s mixed‑delivery preschool system and “to make sure that the summer birthday students have a spot, in the spirit of inclusion and prepping them for their next year in kindergarten.”

Why it matters: the plan affects which children are eligible for state preschool slots in Pacific Grove and how early childhood classrooms will be…