Lindbergh Schools reviews early‑childhood expansion, staffing and program finances

Lindbergh Schools staff presented a workshop update on the district’s community education programs, outlining enrollment pressures, staffing challenges and financial steps intended to keep enterprise programs self‑supporting.

The presentation covered the district’s Early Childhood program (ECE), Flyers Club before/after‑school care and Community Education & Recreation offerings. Caitlin, an early childhood leader, said the district is ‘‘at capacity for full day’’ ECE classes and described classroom staff ratios the district follows: 2‑year‑olds at about 1:8 (16 max per room) and 3–5‑year‑olds at about 1:10 (20 max). She also reported a January snapshot showing 62 students in the enrollment queue who did not receive placement and explained the district requires prospective families to reapply each February rather than preserving prior queue positions.

Why it matters: district presenters said enterprise programs must cover direct program costs and should not be subsidized by property taxes. Joelle Scheibel (introducting the segment) told the board these programs ‘‘act like a business within the school district’’ for accounting purposes, while the district continues to provide indirect supports — facilities, HR, insurance and other services — that are not charged to program budgets.

Early Childhood expansion: staff proposed opening one preschool classroom at Sappington Elementary next year to capture additional 4‑year‑old enrollments. The classroom would operate on the elementary school day schedule and would not provide before‑ or after‑school care; presenters said transportation and meal logistics were not part of the current plan. District staff emphasized the Sappington classroom would initially be a pilot sized to meet the district’s staffing and break‑even thresholds.

Flyers Club and after‑school care: Jennifer Bergman, Flyers Club program manager, said the school‑age childcare program is operating in all six elementary schools and enrolls about 551 children across morning and afternoon sessions. Bergman highlighted staffing and training investments — including professional learning days, CPR/Stop‑the‑Bleed training and use of a high‑school A+ tutor pipeline — and said improvements to support‑staff pay helped reduce the Flyers Club waitlist to roughly a dozen families.

Community Education & Recreation: Kurt Rake, community program manager, reviewed broad program growth in enrichment courses, gymnastics, club sports and rentals. Rake said volunteer support helped restart a large district musical that drew more than 250 participants and that gymnastics and competitive teams have expanded, but he cautioned that physical space is the principal constraint to further growth.

Finances and program changes: a district finance presenter described the combined community programs as a roughly $5.4 million operation and said ECE is the largest single program contributor. (The transcript included a separate ECE figure—$5.5 million—that appears inconsistent with the combined total; staff did not reconcile the two figures during the workshop.) Presenters identified major cost pressures: labor (about 80% of program costs), rising minimum wages and health‑care costs, and ECE food expense (reported near $200,000 annually). They proposed several near‑term measures to strengthen program finances: review positions at attrition, unwind some existing discounts (described as more than $350,000 per year), introduce ACH bank drafts without fees while passing credit‑card processing fees to card users, and investigate late‑payment or late‑pickup fees. Staff also said they will track overtime and the cost of substitute coverage separately so enterprise budgets more accurately reflect leave impacts.

Board members asked whether the district could preserve queue order year‑to‑year; presenters said the current approach resets priority each February to ensure active interest and reduce large inactive waitlists. Several board members encouraged staff to consider shorter priority windows for families already in the queue and to keep evaluating staffing and space solutions.

Votes at a glance: the board approved the workshop agenda by voice vote (moved by Andy, seconded by Jen; vote 7‑0) at the start of the meeting and later approved a motion to adjourn (moved by Andy, seconded by Megan; vote 7‑0).

What’s next: staff said they will pilot the Sappington classroom for one year, continue cross‑department discussions on staffing and facility use, roll out ACH payment options and bring back further updates as program changes are refined.