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District outlines early childhood expansion, assessments and funding limits during Week of the Young Child presentation
Summary
District staff described growth in preschool offerings, use of aligned curriculum and assessments, early evidence of positive correlation between preschool screening and kindergarten benchmarks, and ongoing funding constraints that limit universal preschool expansion.
Topeka Public Schools staff presented a progress update on early childhood programs during a board meeting as part of Week of the Young Child observances. Hannah Taylor, identified as an assistant principal and former early childhood teacher, summarized program growth, curriculum alignment and assessment use; district staff and trustees discussed funding, staffing ratios and transition practices.
Taylor said the district now has “over 900 students” enrolled in full- or half-day early childhood programs and that the district has expanded from roughly 700–750 students several years earlier. She identified 10 “blended classrooms” (classrooms in which the general-education teacher also serves as the special-education teacher and case manager) and said the district aims to add three to four more blended classrooms next year.
The district uses an early-childhood assessment called myIGDIs and a curriculum resource the presenters described as Benchmark Ready to Advance, aligned to the Benchmark Advance kindergarten program. Taylor said her doctoral research compared spring myIGDIs results in preschool to fall kindergarten MAP scores and found “a positive relationship, which is really exciting” and helps staff use the preschool assessment as an early indicator of future performance.
Staff also provided outcome data and program comparisons in response to trustee questions. Board members cited a figure of 1,170 total early-childhood students during discussion; Taylor and staff had earlier referenced “over 900” students in district programs. District staff said last year’s fall MAP results for students who attended district preschool showed 71 percent proficient in language arts and 62 percent proficient in math in the fall kindergarten MAP administration.
Funding limits shaped much of the question-and-answer period. Staff identified multiple funding sources that support early childhood programs: the Kansas Preschool Pilot Program, Head Start funding, and four-year-old at-risk dollars (the meeting record states the 4‑year-old at‑risk funding is allocated at 0.5 per student). Parents as Teachers and other grant-funded services were also described. Trustees asked about staffing ratios; staff said some classrooms operate with a 1:10 teacher-to-child ratio as a maximum and that Sheldon and Pine Ridge sites have two paraprofessionals per classroom for many preschool programs.
District leaders outlined next steps including kindergarten orientation for families and work to standardize curriculum and assessments across preschool sites. Staff said they are applying for additional grants, plan partnerships to expand learning-at-home materials (including planned work with PBS), and will continue evaluating early-childhood metrics to support transitions to kindergarten.
