District approves one‑year extension of Transitional Kindergarten, paired with targeted budget cuts

A district presenter asked the Mill Valley School District Board of Trustees on March 25 to approve a one‑year extension of the district’s Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program for the 2025–26 school year, and the board approved the proposal by voice vote after discussion about funding sources and maintenance priorities.

The presenter told trustees the recommendation reflects broad community support and that TK is intended to run concurrently with the kindergarten day and be taught by credentialed teachers. “My recommendation is that you make a motion to approve the extension of the program for the 2025–26 school year,” the presenter said, explaining staff had identified specific budget lines to reduce in order to sustain the program.

Staff described targeted reductions intended to fund the extension, including trimming staff extra‑duty hours and reducing planned technology replacement spending. They said one recurring budget line that had averaged about $575,000 a year would be reduced to about $450,000 a year going forward. Staff also cited district averages of roughly $1.6 million compared with a one‑year actual near $1.9 million and said a $300,000 reallocation was part of the plan to close the gap.

Trustees questioned the budgeting approach and asked why some maintenance categories had been budgeted well above historical spending. Staff attributed the discrepancy in part to two back‑to‑back water‑damage insurance claims at the Edna site that increased expenses this year; they said approved claim payments are expected to offset some costs when received. Staff told trustees they reviewed three years of expenditure trends and plan to use a consumer price index (CPI) escalator for future budgeting.

Board members also flagged safety concerns tied to deferred maintenance. One trustee said cutting maintenance “to the bone” could compromise safety at older buildings in the district’s wildfire zone and urged careful prioritization of projects tied to Measure G. Staff replied that some urgent projects—HVAC and boiler work cited in the meeting—may need to be reprioritized and that Measure G projects would be evaluated for urgency.

The presenter said some professional‑learning and curriculum implementation costs (including expenditures tied to a recent language‑arts adoption and communities‑of‑practice events) had driven one‑time increases and that staff expect possible one‑time state revenues could help but cannot be relied on. Staff described alternatives to paying extra‑duty hours—for example, releasing a full grade level during regular work hours for collaborative planning—to reduce costs while maintaining planning time.

After discussion, a trustee moved to approve the TK extension for 2025–26 and another trustee seconded. The board approved the motion by voice vote and then adjourned. The motion text recorded in the meeting was to approve an extension of the Transitional Kindergarten program for the 2025–26 school year; the meeting transcript did not record the names of the motion’s mover and seconder or a roll‑call tally.

The board plans no immediate change to the TK schedule: trustees emphasized preserving a full‑day program consistent with kindergarten rather than moving to shorter days. Staff said they will return with any implementation details or updated budget figures if reimbursements or one‑time revenues alter the financing plan.