WASHINGTON — The Prince William County school system has been making cuts over the past few years, and board members now say that the county鈥檚 universal full-day kindergarten could be next.
that Superintendent Steven L. Walts once called the program his 鈥済reatest accomplishment,鈥� but current board members say after years of enrollment that outpaced growth of the budget, and a property-tax hike that looks to be smaller than originally planned, they鈥檙e running out of places to cut.
鈥淚t鈥檚 more of an economic calculation than an educational calculation,鈥� board Chairman Milton C. Johns told The Post. 鈥淲e鈥檙e out of options.鈥�
One proposal would do away with full-day kindergarten at more than half the county鈥檚 57 elementary schools. Almost every district in Virginia offers universal full-day kindergarten, but the district is only required to provide half-day instruction.
鈥淔rom an instructional perspective, yes, we think full-day kindergarten is absolutely needed,鈥� Associate Superintendent for聽for Finance and Support Services聽Dave Cline told The Post. 鈥淏ut somewhere along the line, we鈥檙e going to have to continue to make more and more difficult choices.鈥�
Johns says that class sizes have grown over the years in an attempt to deal with financing cuts, but that class sizes are approaching the legal limit.
The school board meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Kelly Leadership Center located at 14715 Bristow Rd. in Manassas.
