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Waunakee board approves three half‑time 4K teachers after enrollment rises; Get Kids Ready funding remains uncertain
Summary
Facing rising 4K signups, trustees approved three half‑time licensed 4K positions for 2026–27 on one‑year contracts. Staff emphasized the program’s daily enrollment volatility and warned that state 'Get Kids Ready' reimbursements remain uncertain and could affect partner‑site finances.
The Waunakee Community School District Board voted to add three half‑time licensed teacher positions to the district’s 4K program for the 2026–27 school year, approving one‑year contracts intended to respond to a recent uptick in preschool enrollment.
Miranda, who presented live 4K placement data, told trustees the program is highly dynamic: as of the meeting the district had 176 enrolled 4K students with roughly 22 additional children expected from census counts. The district currently lists 246 potential spaces across school and partner sites. Miranda said parents' site preferences and partner‑site capacity are shifting daily and that some families will decline district placements if they do not get their top choice.
Miranda outlined operational options should sites fill: allow some partner sites to go above the standard 13:1 child‑to‑licensed‑teacher ratio by hiring an additional adult, contract with part‑time paraeducators to expand capacity, or reallocate kindergarten staffing if the board elects to change prior kindergarten decisions. Board members noted a related pathway: 15 kindergarten open‑enrollment requests already on file that could influence classroom allocations for next year.
Board members also discussed the state's Get Kids Ready program, which had originally been presented as a $7,000 per‑child payment to partners but now shows a range of possible reimbursements (as low as about $3,000) depending on statewide enrollment; district staff said the lower reimbursements can materially affect some community partners’ financial plans. Trustees asked staff to remove or clarify a footnote about Get Kids Ready in the planned referendum survey to avoid confusing community respondents; staff agreed that the survey team had suggested the footnote was not necessary.
Trustees approved the three half‑time licensed 4K positions on a voice vote; the transcript records a majority in favor and one opposing voice. The motion specified one‑year contracts to allow the district to reassess staffing after the coming year as enrollment and partner‑funding signals become clearer.
What happens next: Staff will post the positions for hire, monitor the daily enrollment feed through May, and present updated placement numbers to the board in May. The board directed staff to preserve placements already committed to partner sites and to prioritize stability in families' existing arrangements when feasible.
Representative quote: “4K data changes daily... parents are applying and the window is open through next month,” Miranda said, underscoring the daily volatility that informed the board’s decision.
