District officials told the Iowa City Community School District Board of Directors on April 22 that the district will offer full‑day preschool options at all elementary schools next fall after a pilot year that the administration described as successful.

Eliza (surname not specified) and Christy Yetley, the district preschool lead, reported that this year’s pilot operated at six sites and served 110 full‑day students alongside 545 half‑day students, for a total of 655 preschoolers in district programs. Staff said waiting lists exist at full‑day sites and reported high parent satisfaction with full‑day options.

Christy Yetley said the district’s early outcome data look promising: in Gold assessment checkpoints, roughly 90% of full‑day 4‑year‑olds met kindergarten‑readiness expectations on the fall‑to‑winter measures cited during the presentation; half‑day results were lower on those interim measures. District presenters and parents described qualitative gains in language, independence and foundational skills for students in the full‑day program.

Funding for the preschool expansion comes primarily from state voluntary preschool funds for 4‑year‑olds, tuition for some families (particularly some 3‑year‑old tuition slots), special‑education funding for children with IEPs, and grants and private donations. District finance staff told directors they had not used general fund dollars to pay for the preschool expansion to date. The district cited Shared Visions and a private donor supporting specific sites; staff said the district will continue to seek grant funding including a possible state Continuum of Care grant.

Administrators said additional minor construction projects will be needed at some schools to create dedicated preschool classrooms; several of those projects were listed on the agenda as public hearings for plan approval and forthcoming bid dates, including the Wood Elementary Preschool Project and work at Penn and Coralville Central. Buildings scheduled for new preschool spaces will receive furniture and equipment, staff said, and 11 buildings plan to offer extended before‑and‑after‑school care for 4‑year‑olds next year.

Board members asked about tuition, equity and staffing. Staff said 3‑year‑old tuition is charged at roughly half the 4‑year‑old tuition rate because the state does not provide funding for 3‑year‑old slots. District staff also said the preschool fund maintains a reserve to manage year‑to‑year enrollment growth so the district would not need to use the general fund for the rollout. The administration reported that principals are hiring preschool teachers and that some principals were already filling positions for the fall.

Directors asked about providing breakfast to preschool students; staff said some buildings already provide breakfast across the building and the nutrition services director would expand access so preschoolers could receive breakfast. Directors also asked about before‑and‑after‑school staff ratios and potential cost impacts; administrators said programs were assessing ratios and watching state grant opportunities to offset costs.

The board did not take a separate action on preschool funding at the April 22 meeting but held multiple related public hearings on capital projects needed to install or upgrade preschool spaces.