S.C. Child Development Pilot Program

First Steps 4-year-old kindergarten

classes now enrolling for 2008-09!

Qualifying families pay no tuition.

TO QUALIFY, YOUR CHILD MUST:
● Be 4 years old on or before Sept. 1, 2008.
 (Please provide a copy of your child’s birth certificate, passport or other official proof of age.)

● Be eligible for the free or reduced-price lunch program or Medicaid.
(Please provide a copy of your tax return, proof of food stamps eligibility, TANF, SSI, etc.)

● Live in one of the following school districts: Abbeville, Allendale, Bamberg 1, Bamberg 2, Barnwell 19, Barnwell 29, Barnwell 45, Berkeley, Chesterfield, Clarendon 1, Clarendon 2, Clarendon 3, Dillon 1,  Dillon 2, Dillon 3, Florence 1, Florence 2, Florence 3, Florence 4, Florence 5, Hampton 1, Hampton 2, Jasper, Laurens 55, Laurens 56, Lee, Lexington 4, Marion 1, Marion 2, Marion 7, Marlboro, McCormick, Orangeburg 3, Orangeburg 4, Orangeburg 5, Saluda or Williamsburg.
(Please provide two forms of residency verification, such as a current tax bill, utility bill, rental agreement, etc.)

ABOUT THE 4K PROGRAM
Classes are “full day”: Students attend classes 6.5 hours per day, five days per week during the 180-day school year. All classes are taught using research-based curricula. Eligible providers include those in the following settings: private, for-profit, non-profit, faith-based and Head Start.

Some providers may offer transportation. Wrap-around (non-school hours) care may also be available at an additional cost.

HOW TO APPLY
Applications must be submitted to the private 4K provider where you wish to enroll your child. Contact a provider in your area (listed below) and ask for an application.

For more information, contact your local First Steps county office or South Carolina First Steps.

The S.C. Child Development Pilot Program was approved by the S.C. General Assembly and Gov. Mark Sanford in 2006. CDEPP is expanding 4K options in both school district and non-school district settings; First Steps is overseeing the non-school district expansion.

DOWNLOAD AND PRINT

• Approved 4K Provider List 2008-09
  
• First Steps 4K Expansion Guidelines 2007-2008
• First Steps 4K Expansion Guidelines 2008-2009

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

(NOTE: For additional details on these and other questions, please download the First Steps 4K Expansion Guidelines from the link above.)

Q: What is the South Carolina Child Development Education Pilot Program?
A: In May of 2006 the South Carolina General Assembly created a pilot program designed to expand 4-year-old kindergarten in both school district and non-district settings. First Steps is currently accepting student applications for 2008-09.

Q: Who administers the program?
A: South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness currently oversees 4K expansion in private for-profit, private non-profit, faith-based, Head Start and other non-school district settings. Expansion within the state's public school districts is overseen by the South Carolina Department of Education.

Q: Who decides where each eligible student will enroll?
A: Parents may choose to enroll their children in either an approved school district or private setting.

Q: What makes a child eligible to participate?
A: During the 2008-09 school year, children must meet three separate eligibility criteria. Each child must be:

Priority will be given to students living in the case's eight trial districts. These are: Allendale, Dillon 2, Florence 4, Hampton 2, Jasper, Lee, Marion 7 and Orangeburg 3.

Students residing in the 29 remaining plaintiff districts will also be deemed eligible for participation on a prioritized basis, based on available funds, beginning with those districts deemed to have the largest populations of underserved four-year-old children.

A list of the trial and plaintiff districts can be accessed by clicking here.

Q: Do eligible providers have to be located within a plaintiff school district?
A: Not necessarily. The First Steps 4K Expansion Program is designed to expand service to eligible children. Students meeting all three forms of eligibility (age, income and geography) may attend any approved program — even if the provider of choice is not located within the school district or county of residence. Any South Carolina preschool provider may seek initial eligibility, effective immediately.

Q: Which providers are eligible to participate?
A: The First Steps 4K Expansion is open to DSS-regulated (licensed, approved or registered) private for-profit, private non-profit, faith-based and Head Start providers willing to serve eligible children. Providers seek initial eligibility from South Carolina First Steps — a process that includes both an application and site visit. Approved providers then receive First Steps funding based on the number of eligible students they serve.

Q: How much funding do providers receive?
A: Based upon current legislative discussions, First Steps providers will be eligible for up to $4,093 per child in 2008-09, with the possibility of additional funding for supplies/equipment (grant funding of up to $10,000 per classroom for new providers) and transportation ($550 per eligible child).

Q: May providers charge tuition and fees above and beyond the state allocation?
A: No, not for the school day itself. Tuition and fees may be charged for extended instructional hours and wrap-around care.

Q: What is the length of the required instructional program?
A: Approved 4K classrooms will offer a 6.5 hour school day, 180 days per year.

Q: Is a specific curriculum required?
A: Yes. Providers will be required to utilize an approved, research-based curriculum aligned with the South Carolina Content Standards. Information on the approved curricula is located in the First Steps 4K Expansion Guidelines.

Q: How are the 4K expansion classrooms staffed?
A: Both a lead teacher and a full-time instructional assistant will staff each classroom of 11 or more students. Classrooms serving 10 students (the minimum class size) may be staffed by a lead teacher only.

Q: Who is qualified to serve as a lead teacher?
A: Lead teachers will be required to possess at least a two-year degree in early childhood education or a related field (or be granted a waiver of this requirement by South Carolina First Steps) and be enrolled and demonstrating progress toward completion of a teacher education program within four years. For specific details on lead teacher qualifications, see the First Steps 4K Expansion Guidelines.

Q: Who is qualified to serve as an instructional assistant?
A: Instructional assistants will possess a high school diploma or its equivalent and have at least two years of experience working with children under five-years-old. Instructional assistants must have completed the Early Childhood Development Credential (ECD) 101, or enroll in and complete this course within 12 months of hire.

Q: What types of professional development are required of staff?
A: All classroom staff (both teachers and instructional assistants) will be required to complete at least 15 hours of professional development annually, to include hours in emergent literacy and teaching children in poverty.

Q: Do programs have to provide transportation?
A: No. However, the provision of transportation will be considered desirable. Programs providing transportation for eligible children may receive up to $550 in additional funding for each student transported. Providers will be allowed to set their own, reasonable transportation boundaries.

Q: What type of monitoring is involved?
A: Providers will be subject to both announced and unannounced monitoring and technical assistance visits from First Steps staff throughout the school year.

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