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Perry. D. 2007. Starting 'em early: Mercedes expanding 3-year-old pre-K program. The Monitor, McAllen, Texas. (April 17): online

Starting 'em early: Mercedes expanding 3-year-old pre-K program
Daniel Perry
April 17, 2007 - 12:48AM

MERCEDES ã More 3-year-olds will get the chance to start school when the Mercedes school district's pre-kindergarten program expands this fall.

The district now offers one class of about 20 students who are migrants, educationally disadvantaged or from active-duty military families.

The half-day program will expand to about 88 students ã half attending class in the mornings and the rest in the afternoons, Superintendent Luis Ramos said. The district will also take in limited English proficient students for classes at the Mercedes Early Childhood Center on West Sixth Street.

"We need to focus on these students to be able to read by the time they finish second grade," Ramos said. The district joins Hidalgo and Progreso, which offer full-day 3-year-old programs, as some of the few in the Rio Grande Valley catering to students so young.

In Edinburg, the school district administers the state Building Bridges Program, which has four home educators visiting more than 60 migrant 3-year-olds and their families. Jesus Vela Jr., the district's migrant coordinator, said the state curriculum has been in use for at least a decade and teaches parents how to work with their children on learning development. The families are found through the district's registration information.

Districts like Edcouch-Elsa, McAllen, Mission and Rio Grande City start students off in 4-year-old pre-kindergarten. Ramos said some districts do not serve 3-year-old students because of limited space and staffing.

Patty Raymond, a school readiness integration specialist at the Region One Education Service Center in Edinburg, said it's never too ready to help children learn. She said research indicates that by the time a child is 3 years old that they should be well on their way to developing problem solving, critical thinking and social skills. Reading should also play a role, with the children collecting at least 1,500 words in their vocabulary through the stimulation.

"The more experiences they have early on, the more likely they will be to be ready to continue on in school," Raymond said.

Ramos said two unused classrooms Mercedes' early childhood center will be designated for the new program.

He also is moving a teacher and paraprofessional already in the district to teach the new incoming students. Registration will begin before the end of the school year. "It's important we develop these students, especially the students with a language barrier and that we are able to help them with their ABCs, to be able to sound letters and how to count," Ramos said.

He estimated the student increase would cost about $170,000 for staff salaries and benefits and classroom materials.

Suzanne Marchman, a Texas Education Agency spokeswoman in Austin, said districts can have a 3-year-old program if 15 students are identified who do not understand or speak English, do not have a permanent residence or are educationally disadvantaged.

She said the agency does not require districts to do this, but mandates them to do so if there is the same number of 4-year-olds meeting the same requirements.

Marchman said districts can get enough money to have half-day sessions for 3- and 4-year-old students, but any instructional time beyond that must be paid for by the district. Hidalgo schools Superintendent Daniel P. King said the district received a state pre-kindergarten expansion grant about seven years ago to help pay for its program accommodating 201 students.

The district, which also uses its Title 1 and bilingual education funding to pay other expenses to keep students on its four elementary campuses all day, has spent about $500,000 on the 3-year-old program.

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