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Parents and Reach Academy staff urge Buffalo Board to restore and expand UPK slots
Summary
Multiple parents, Reach Academy staff and a student told the Buffalo Board of Education they want the district to reinstate and expand Reach Academy's universal prekindergarten (UPK), citing long wait lists, high demand and procedural issues with a recent RFP site visit that they say penalized a temporary location.
Several parents, teachers and school leaders urged the Buffalo Board of Education on July 17 to reinstate and expand Reach Academy Charter School's universal prekindergarten (UPK) program, saying the district's recent award process left dozens of local families without access to subsidized preschool.
"Should grants intended for the most vulnerable among us be directed towards those who can't afford to pay?" a public commenter asked, saying funds meant for low-income families had been allocated to providers who charge tuition, including Saint Joseph University's childcare, South Buffalo Catholic and the Jewish Community Center.
Dejana Patterson, a parent, told the board Reach Academy received more than 200 UPK applications this year and "filled every single [spot] within 40 minutes," and urged the district to increase Reach's allocation so more children can enroll. Reach leaders and teachers repeatedly described long wait lists and high need: Robin Nellis, a Reach teacher, said Reach scored 87% on the written portion of the district RFP but lost points on the site-visit portion because the school was temporarily being used for middle-school students during a construction phase. "It didn't make sense to us," Nellis said, adding that the site would be retrofitted for UPK after an award.
Superintendent Dr. Williams acknowledged the testimony and said the district's process includes both a narrative review and a required site visit. She told Reach leaders the district could not award funds without a site visit but offered a follow-up meeting "on the table" with Chief Botticelli to look into where the disconnect occurred and to review the concerns the presenters raised.
No vote or immediate reversal was taken at the meeting. Board members thanked Reach speakers for their advocacy and asked district staff to follow up, with the superintendent and the chief academic officer identified as contacts for additional review.
Next steps: Reach Academy representatives were invited to meet with Chief Botticelli and district staff to review the site-visit findings and the application record; the board did not set a deadline for a decision at the meeting.
