DEPARTMENT: Pre-K 4 SA
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Kathy Bruck, CEO
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Citywide
SUBJECT:
CEO Report
SUMMARY:
This item includes a briefing of operations by Pre-K 4 SA CEO.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
This item will include a briefing on the following topics:
• 2016-17 Competitive Education Grants
• 2016-17 student enrollment
• Westat’s acquisition of Edvance Research, Inc.
• Zoo School collaboration
ISSUE:
Pre-K 4 SA will provide an informational briefing on the updated timeline and to-date progress for the first issuance of Competitive Education Grants to include final Board approval.
Staff will also provide an update on the status of student enrollment for the 2016-17 school year beginning in August 2016.
Recently, Edvance Research, Inc. became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the national company research company Westat. Staff will provide a status update.
Finally, staff will provide a briefing on the Pre-K 4 SA collaboration with the Zoo School. In 2004, The San Antonio Zoo launched the Zoo School, a preschool program that services students between the ages of three and five years. Following the purchase of a nearly 30,000-square-foot building, plans were recently announced to expand the program from its current capacity of 49 students to service up to 200 students. The focus of the program will be that of a nature-based preschool where children explore, experiment and learn through a lens of nature and animals.
In spring 2015, Pre-K 4 SA staff met with Stacy McReynolds, Director of Education for the San Antonio Zoo to determine any potential partnership opportunities. The Zoo School requested to postpone discussion of a partnership until their operation was established and they will reach out to Pre-K 4 SA once that occurs. Pre-K 4 SA staff is also planning to reengage with Zoo School in spring 2016.
Since it’s inauguration, the Pre-K 4 SA North Center has served as the program pilot for providing children opportunities to interact with nature and the outdoors for the Pre-K 4 SA program.
Key “Zoo School” Facts
The Zoo School program is not a pre-kindergarten offering. Rather, The Zoo School offers a mother’s-day-out model with an educational focus. Programmatic specifics include:
• School hours = Monday- Friday from 9am-2pm
• No extended day offered
• Four Attendance Options ranging from 2-5 days/week
• Children bring their own lunch. Snack is provided
• There are 24 children in the class with one lead teacher and two assistants
• Zoo School is fully licensed by the Texas DFPS
• The student to teacher ratio 8 students to 1 teacher
• The children spend 50 percent indoors and 50 percent outdoors
• Students go to the San Antonio Zoo every day
Pre-K 4 SA Outdoor Learning Environment Facts North Center
Progress to date includes:
• An outdoor classroom has been created
• The Fall 2015 launch of the North Center’s Nature Club designed to engage children and their families in the importance of spending time in unstructured outdoor experiences
• Awarded National Learning Institute grant in the fall of 2015 for $22,000 to allow for architectural and landscape design of the North Center’s outdoor play area along with parent and community training on outdoor activities for four-year olds
ALTERNATIVES:
This item is a briefing for informational purposes only.
FISCAL IMPACT:
This item is a briefing for informational purposes only.
RECOMMENDATION:
This item is a briefing for informational purposes only.