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Pre-K Classes Continue To Grow

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By KLINT LOWRY, The Suncoast News

Published: February 17, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - The Little Sunshine Preschool and Learning Center was buzzing at midmorning on a recent Wednesday. It was filled with the distinctive white noise that dozens of happy, active 4-year-olds can create.

"They're still having fun at the same time," said director and owner Stephanie LeDouaron. "They don't even know they're learning."

That's just the atmosphere LeDouaron had in mind when she opened the center a little more than a year ago: A bright, clean energetic place for preschool-aged children.
Little Sunshine Preschool and Learning Center is one of 115 facilities in Pasco County offering state-sponsored voluntary pre-kindergarten programs. VPK, as it is commonly called, is available to all children who turn 4 before Sept. 1 of a given school year.

VPK has been available since the 2005-06 school year. In 2002, Florida voters approved an amendment to the state constitution requiring voluntary pre-K programs.

Since the inception of VPK in Florida, however, many parents of eligible children have not taken advantage of the free program.

When Little Sunshine opened its doors Jan. 8, 2007, only 11 students were enrolled in its VPK classes. That has changed, LeDouaron said, because more parents realize what VPK offers.

A year later, the school has several classes and more than 80 prekindergarten students. The sudden upsurge there reflects the way things are going throughout the county.

"The program has gone from 2,300 students last year to about 2,800 this year," said Betsy Kier, Pasco County manager for the nonprofit agency Childhood Development Services. CDS serves as an administrative conduit between the state government and VPK providers.

As demand has grown, so has supply. In the past year, the number of VPK providers in Pasco County has gone from 92 to 115, Kier said. VPK classrooms countywide can accommodate 3,877 students, so there is still room for parents shopping for a provider, she said.

While the providers have some leeway in the lesson plans they use, they all must conform to a set list of VPK goals.

"There are lots of guidelines, lots of paperwork that we have to make sure we are up on," said Little Sunshine's assistant director, Amanda Hart. "They give us specific guidelines we have to follow, and they come in for their observations."

The aim of VPK is giving youngsters the skills they need to succeed in kindergarten and the rest of their time in school.

"It's not just about learning the ABCs and 123s, it's about being in a group setting," LeDouaron said.

Children enrolled in VPK are entitled to 540 hours of free instruction over the course of a school year. That works out to three hours a day, five days a week.
Little Sunshine offers morning and afternoon sessions. If parents want or need their children to spend more time at the center each day, they can enroll them in day care for the rest of the day. There are discounted rates for VPK students.

What are known as wraparound classes at Little Sunshine and child care centers are obliterating the distinction between "preschool" and "day care," LeDouaron explained, since they are operated in the same way.

Even classes for 2- and 3-year-olds are operated with VPK guidelines in mind, LeDouaron said.

For information about VPK eligibility requirements or other facets of the VPK program, call 1-866-357-3239 or visit the Volunteer Prekindergarten Web site, www.floridajobs.org/VPK/index.html.

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