Amendment #923 to H4000

K1 Classroom Grant Program and Universal Early Education in Underperforming School Districts

Representatives Decker of Cambridge, Cabral of New Bedford, Vieira of Falmouth, Conroy of Wayland, Gordon of Bedford, Khan of Newton, Vega of Holyoke and Farley-Bouvier of Pittsfield move to amend the bill in Section 2 by inserting after item 3000-5000 the following item:

3000-5025 For grants to cities, towns, regional school districts and educational collaboratives to provide educational opportunities on a voluntary basis to 4-year-olds in the district through the creation of Pre-Kindergarten classrooms; provided, that guidelines and applications for this funding shall be developed jointly by the departments of early education and care and elementary and secondary education, and shall include quality standards which shall ensure school readiness and third grade reading proficiency for students in Pre-Kindergarten classrooms; provided further, that said standards shall include but not be limited to, teacher qualifications, curriculum standards, ideal class size, and any other best practices that will help ensure quality; provided, that said grants shall be approved jointly by the commissioners of early education and care and elementary and secondary education; provided further, that preference may be given in awarding these funds to Gateway Cities, level 3 and level 4 schools (collectively, “Emerging Schools”), and said awards shall maximize, as far as is feasible, both geographic and demographic diversity; provided further, that preference shall be given to innovative, collaborative proposals jointly proposed by school districts, private providers, human service agencies, and local and regional non-profits that ensure Pre-Kindergarten classrooms are established with appropriate wrap-around child care and human services; and provided further, that funds distributed from this item shall be deposited with the treasurer of that city, town, regional school district or educational collaborative and held in a separate account and shall be expended by the school committee of the city, town, regional school district or educational collaborative without further appropriation, notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary; provided further that $500,000 of the total funds in this item shall be used by the departments of early education and care and elementary and secondary education to jointly develop and complete, by the end of fiscal year 2015, a detailed plan for the universal early education of 3 and 4-year-olds feeding into the foregoing Emerging Schools.   $2,500,000