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District details prekindergarten enrollment, language diversity and expansion of dual‑language pre‑K
Summary
Director of Early Childhood Education reported that Salem‑Keizer's early childhood programs serve multiple grant streams and languages, with 4 existing dual‑language pre‑K sites and a planned new dual‑language classroom at Washington Elementary for 2025–26.
Stephanie Wetzel, director of early childhood education for Salem‑Keizer SD 24J, presented the district's annual prekindergarten report on June 10, outlining program types, enrollment, demographics and priorities for early learning.
Wetzel said the district operates multiple programs under different funding streams: Head Start (about 390 students in 17 classrooms), Preschool Promise (about 165 students) and a Title I pre‑K program (about 110 students), along with a teen‑parent early childhood center and a migrant pre‑K program. She reported that approximately 71% of pre‑K families identify as Hispanic and that the program supports children who speak more than 15 home languages in addition to Spanish and English.
The district currently runs four dual‑language pre‑K classrooms (at Scott, Bush, the East Salem Community Center and the migrant program) and plans to add a dual‑language pre‑K at Washington Elementary for the 2025–26 school year, Wetzel said. She described investments in mental‑health and behavioral supports, including a full‑time mental‑health therapist, a behavior trainer and expanded training for staff in trauma‑responsive practices. The program also conducts screenings (health, vision, dental, developmental), provides wraparound services, and partners with community agencies and literacy programs such as the Imagination Library and Marion‑Polk Early Learning Hub.
Wetzel tied early learning work to board goals on third‑grade reading, attendance and sense of belonging, describing classroom practices that support early literacy and consistent attendance, and noting family engagement and referral processes when barriers to attendance arise.
Provenance: Wetzel and the early childhood team presented slides and answered board members' questions during the superintendent's report segment and the scheduled pre‑K presentation.
