SAN ANTONIO — Classes start Monday for the city's largest school district.
In a change for this year, Northside ISD officials said they're expanding the district's full-day pre-kindergarten program to all elementary schools. To put it into perspective, that’s about 80 campuses in all from inside Loop 410 to outside Loop 1604 on the northwest side.
On Monday morning, teachers at Ellison Elementary will welcome another class of 4-year-olds to the full-day program, which has been offered at the campus since 2021. Students will attend class just as long as kids in higher grades do.
Barbara Triplett, instructional specialist for NISD pre-K and kindergarten, said the program started in 2019 after the Texas Legislature mandated all students qualifying for pre-K could be offered a full-day program.
“It was necessary for us to do a slow rollout just because of the number of teachers required, the number of trainings, the cost involved in setting up the classrooms," Triplett said. "We wanted to be really purposeful in deciding how we rolled it out so that the children it most benefits and impacts would have that opportunity first."
Enrollment is ongoing and children qualify based on guidance from the Texas Education Agency.
Qualifying Areas:
- Children with a primary language other than English
- Children who are educationally disadvantaged
- Children who are homeless
- Children in military families
- Children in the foster care system
- Children in families honored with the Star of Texas Award
To see if your child is eligible, visit the district’s website.
Last year, Marianne Diego’s son qualified for the pre-K program. Gonzalo Vega didn’t speak English on the first day of school, but his mom said he was bilingual in both English and Spanish by the end of the year.
“By the time he enters kindergarten, he will be super confident,” said Diego.
Diego said the program also improved her son’s social skills and general knowledge of academics. Gonzalo’s teacher couldn’t agree more.
“It’s very intentional, the things that we do (in the classroom). We do a good job of meeting the students where they are at,” said Valerie James, an Ellison dual-language teacher.
For parents who may be considering enrolling their child into the program, Diego encourages it.
“I would tell (parents) not to think twice, and to do it. The teachers are really capable to get them to learn in a fun environment,” she said.
>MORE TEXAS EDUCATION NEWS: