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Fayette County’s ‘Classroom on Wheels’ expands outreach, connects families to screenings and kindergarten resources
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Summary
At an April 27 planning session, Fayette County Public Schools staff described growth and partnerships for their Classroom on Wheels mobile preschool: regular sessions serving 17 families (29 children), 154 new families at community events this year, and on-site vision/hearing screenings that led to follow-up referrals.
At its April 27 planning work session, the Fayette County Board of Education heard an update on the Classroom on Wheels, a district-run mobile preschool program that brings certified preschool instruction and family supports to neighborhood sites.
Director of early education Dr. Whitney Stevenson introduced the team and said the program combines regular preschool sessions, open community events and partnerships with local institutions. A district presenter summarized the schedule: community events on Mondays and Fridays and preschool sessions Tuesdays through Thursdays, with the green bus operating at Martin Luther King Park and the purple bus at Tate Street Community Center.
“The mission of the Classroom on Wheels is to empower families to support their young children's growth through play, everyday interactions, and meaningful conversations that nurture a love of learning and build kindergarten readiness,” a district presenter said during the presentation.
Staff described multi-year growth: the program began in March 2023 with three families and five children in regular programming and now serves 17 families and 29 children in scheduled preschool sessions; staff also reported 154 new families encountered through community events this school year (new families counted once). The program has provided vision, hearing and speech screenings; staff said screenings led to five follow-up vision appointments and several referrals into the special education evaluation process so some children can access preschool special education services earlier than they might otherwise.
Presenters highlighted partnerships with Fayette County parks and libraries, Family Resource Centers and local schools to host events and to connect families to supports. They also described language-access efforts: the team said bilingual staff and portable translators (Vasco devices) have been used and that Nepali- and Spanish-speaking families have repeatedly returned to the program.
Board members praised the outreach. Board member Amy Green called it “a wonderful example of creating access and opportunity,” and other members asked staff to track whether children who participate later enroll in district preschool or kindergarten. Presenters said they are exploring ways to share transition profiles with kindergarten teachers and to track participants’ eventual school placements without promising a finalized districtwide tracking system yet.
Superintendent Terry Murphy and board members encouraged continued community partnerships and recommended that staff bring back any policy or budget implications as the program scales. The board did not take a vote on the presentation; staff said the Classroom on Wheels will be included in regular reporting as the district develops its local accountability measures.
The district posted program photos and a schedule on social media and invited families to follow FCPS Classroom on Wheels for event information.
