■ Education
Continued From Page 8
“ Adjusting the student to staff ratio alone will help , but will not solve the problem completely ” Tavormina contends . “ This is a business , and as such , cost vs . quality is an important aspect . The business model needs to maintain quality standards against an efficient cost structure . Positive relationships with the young students are essential . Increasing the ratio of student to staff may be cost effective , but would be detrimental to the quality of care . What ’ s needed is a balanced business model that takes both sides into account ”.
Early childhood education needs to be reimagined and restructured . As part of this effort , substantial public and private funds will have to be allocated , existing public / private partnerships will need to be expanded , and new cooperative alliances will need to be forged . Though hampered by the pandemic , Lightbridge Academy continues to grow . The company projects double-digit expansion by the end of 2022 . Universal pre-K , administered correctly , will facilitate this growth . Mismanaged , universal pre-K will decimate the early childhood education industry .
Both Falzarano and Tavormina agree that in order for universal pre-K to work effectively , community centers must be involved so parents have the option for extended care . Universal pre-K needs to be part of a mixed delivery of services . The school districts will have difficulty handling it without private providers ; private providers will not be able to survive without the public funds allocated to the effort .
Pre-K is not childcare . In order to go back to work , parents need childcare available year-round for extended hours . Early education – childcare facilities fill the need for extended hours before and after school . In order to manage pre-K , public schools will need to add staff — that in turn adds to the tax burden while eliminating the most profitable portion of the childcare industry ’ s business . According to experts , if , rather than increasing the public school payroll , the state worked in cooperation with private providers , both children and parents would be better served .
Pre-K is not childcare . In order to go back to work , parents need childcare available year-round for extended hours .
Sunday 10:00am