COLUMBUS, Ohio -- An Ohio Senate bill could delay the effective date of the requirement for all-day kindergarten.
Under House Bill 1, all-day kindergarten would be required beginning in fiscal year 2011 but senators Gary Cates, Timothy Grendell, Bill Seitz and Tim Schaffer want to give school districts more time to comply with the new requirement.
They introduced legislation last week in the form of Senate Bill 173 to extend the deadline.
Some school districts say they would have to find additional classroom space and hire more teachers to accommodate the new rule.
"The problem was when House Bill 1 was passed, the budget, it created an unfunded mandate on local schools to add the second half of the day for full-day kindergarten. For many districts, that unfunded mandate is a real problem and it's going to take more than a year for them to deal with it," Grendell said.
Upper Arlington City Schools surveyed its parents and 70 percent said they support all-day kindergarten.
The superintendent said that delaying the requirement is the right thing to do.
"I think in these tough economic times and particularly when school districts have hiring issues for new kindergarten teachers and finding available space, I think any delay is very useful judgment indeed," said Upper Arlington City Schools Superintendent Jeffrey Weaver.
Under House Bill 173, districts can still apply for waivers and parents can still request half-day kindergarten.
There is an option for districts to use space in licensed child care centers if needed.
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