Peter J. Light Superintendent of Schools
To:
Acton Boxborough Regional School Committee Peter Light, Superintendent of Schools
From: Date: RE:
February 8, 2025
All Day Kindergarten Information and Proposal
The School Committee has articulated a goal of transitioning to tuition-free All Day Kindergarten, and has been engaged in a multi-year plan since 2019 to achieve that goal. Prior to FY20, the district charged families $4,500 per student to send their child to All Day Kindergarten. Since 2019, the District has been able to reduce tuition by 60% to $1,800 in FY23. To achieve this, the district used the strategy of using one-time funds (E&D and ARPA) coupled with gradual budget increases to offset costs. As a result of the extraordinary financial challenges faced in FY25, and the need for an operational override, the District had to reconsider all user fee structures, including ADK tuition levels. As part of the FY25 budget, ADK tuition was increased by $125 for an annual fee of $1,925. We remain committed to the Committee’s goal of offering tuition-free All Day Kindergarten, and see this as an important component of our community’s equity goals. We also feel that to be responsible stewards of the budget, that goal must also be balanced with preserving other priorities and needs at this time that are supported by the District. Given our continued financial challenges, we are recommending that the ADK tuition for FY26 remain at the current amount of $1,925.
Possible motion:
“For the FY26 budget, to set the All Day Kindergarten Tuition at $ 1,925 per student for the 2024-25 school year.”
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