Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Chandler Unified outlines expansion, licensing and braided funding plan for preschool and pre-K programs
Summary
District staff presented a multi-year plan to expand and standardize CUSD early childhood offerings, describing braided funding, licensing goals, curriculum alignment and enrollment patterns; no formal board action was taken.
Chandler Unified School District staff told the Governing Board they plan to expand and standardize the district’s preschool and pre-kindergarten offerings, with a stated goal of roughly 47 classrooms by the 2025–26 school year and all preschool classrooms licensed by the Arizona Department of Health Services.
The presentation by Dr. Herb Fletcher, Dr. Marshall and Dr. Edgar framed district efforts as a response to both national shortfalls in early childhood access and local demand. Speakers said Chandler serves about 1,000 young children in preschool and pre-K on a consistent basis and currently counted 941 enrolled on the day of the presentation; district demographers estimate roughly 16,000 children ages 0–4 live within CUSD boundaries.
District staff said they will continue using a braided funding model that combines tuition-based community education, Title I dollars, First Things First scholarships and federally-mandated special education funding to support classrooms and shared costs such as furniture and curriculum. Dr. Marshall described a push to make curriculum, furniture and professional development consistent across programs so that teachers and students receive…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
