West Marin school district cuts preschool for 3-year-olds

Officials of the Bolinas-Stinson Union School District have taken the first step toward eliminating a free public preschool program for 3-year-olds.

The district has issued layoff notices for two preschool instructors and a bus driver position associated with the program. If nothing changes, the preliminary layoff notices would become final by May 15, the state’s deadline for staff cuts for the 2025-26 school year.

Superintendent Leo Kostelnik said the reduction of the preschool program would save about $220,000 in the budget’s general fund. He said the district will continue to cover its transitional kindergarten program, a free public school offering for 4-year-olds to prepare them for kindergarten at age 5.

The district board voted to issue layoff notices during its meeting on March 11.

“There is downward pressure on our budget,” Kostelnik said in a report prior to the vote. “Costs continue to grow across all programming, while revenue projections for the next several years are significantly lower than the growth the district has experienced over the last 10-plus years.”

The budget crunch coincides with the fifth and final year of the phased-in transitional kindergarten mandate from the state. As of this year, children who turn 4 by Sept. 1 will be eligible for transitional kindergarten and school districts are expected to offer the program in the fall.

As a result, the Bolinas-Stinson Union School District will separate services for 4-year-olds out of the preschool and incorporate them as transitional kindergarten in the overall curriculum for 2025-26, Kostelnik said.

“The school district seeks to prioritize TK-8 programs, while supporting fiscal solvency and minimizing contributions from the general fund,” Kostelnik said.

The district has issued a request for proposals from outside vendors to lease the same Stinson Beach classroom as the existing preschool and to run a preschool there. The deadline for a preliminary letter of intent from potential providers is April 11, with a full proposal due by May 2.

Potential providers must “obtain and maintain a valid childcare or daycare license from Community Care Licensing under the California Department of Social Services,” said Johanna Scutt, a district administrator. “The existing space is currently licensed.”

Other requirements include experience in preschool management, including curriculum development, staff qualifications and compliance with licensing regulations, Scutt said.

The district’s preschool program started in 2017-18 for 4-year-olds and expanded to include 3-year-olds in 2020-21, Kostelnik said.

In the new preschool, he said, the district would favor proposals for up to 20 children at age 2 and 3 “and as close to eight hours of daily student programming as possible.”

The district expects to notify its choice of new preschool provider by June 15, with classes to start in August.

In a message to the community, Kostelnik said the district is “not in a budget crisis requiring further program cuts.”

“However, the California state budget outlook remains highly uncertain — and we face threats of the cessation of federal education grant funds from the Trump administration,” he said.

Other pressures on the district’s $6.3 million spending plan include declining revenue growth projections, and expected 4% annual increases in expenses. The district also is in three-year contract negotiations with both of its employee unions.

The district will have a better idea of the fiscal picture when Gov. Gavin Newsom presents his revised budget in May, Kostelnik said.

The district serves 109 students from Bolinas, Stinson Beach and a portion of Muir Beach. Its Bolinas campus is for second through eighth grades, and its Stinson Beach campus has preschool through first grades.