All-Day Kindergarten Approved in 5-to-2 Vote

By Richard C Dujardin

NORTH PROVIDENCE — After more than an hour of emotional debate, the School Committee voted 5 to 2 last night to start all-day kindergarten in all elementary schools this fall.

The move brought cheers to a standing-room-only crowd that filled the library at North Providence High School, as well as a warning from School Committee member Helen Reall that the decision might lead to a deficit with serious implications.

Supporters of the measure did not rule out the possibility of a deficit, but Committeeman Stephen Palmieri said School Supt. Donna Ottaviano had managed in the past to save money and to come up with budget surpluses; he said he was confident that she could do so again.

Ottaviano told the committee last year that changing from a half- day to full-day schedule would cost an estimated $1.2 million and said last night her estimate still holds.

She said she plans to meet with administrators in all of the schools to determine what space would be available to make room for six kindergarten classrooms.

The vote last night came on the heels of two earlier unanimous votes to retain a third fifth grade classroom at Greystone School that the superintendent had recommended cutting for budget reasons, and to create a third first grade at the school to help deal with anticipated increases in enrollment.

Teachers at the school said registration for this fall’s first grade class have already reached 47 — 7 more than the contractual limit for two classrooms — and that it was very likely the number of students will increase before classes begin.

Palmieri, who led the drive for full-day kindergarten, repeated his argument that there is no better time to make kindergarten full day because the School Department has paid off its deficits and is one of only six districts in the state that do not offer full-day kindergarten.

School Committee member Roderick DaSilva, who ultimately joined the majority in supporting the move, spent a good deal of time last night offering reasons why he might vote against it.

He said the parents’ desire to have the School Department “baby- sit” their kindergarten-age children while they work is not a sufficient reason to spend $1.2 million the School Department does not have.

His remark drew a furious response from School Committee Chairman Vito Martinelli and from parents and some longtime advocates.

“Don’t feed me that garbage,” said William Florian, a resident whose daughter, Gina Picard, is a principal at Robert F. Kennedy Elementary School in Providence and who has long advocated for a full-day kindergarten. “This is not about baby-sitting. It’s about education.”

Anna Santos, a parent, said she and her husband chose to live in North Providence because of its reputation as excellent school system. But the past year, she said, she and her husband have had to struggle to find ways to drop off their daughter for afternoon kindergarten and to pick her up two hours later.

Because the afternoon is so short, she said, children learn little that is useful, while children in other school systems with full-day kindergartens are expanding their vocabulary and learning more.

“A half-day kindergarten is not proper for the North Providence School Department,” she said. “It makes the School Department look ridiculous.”

Another parent argued that without time for recess or snacks, the children had almost no time to socialize or interact with their peers, while another parent said that a full-day kindergarten could save the town money in the long run because fewer children might need extra help when they enter first grade.

School board member Ronald Iannetta emphasized the importance of fiscal responsibility and said there was a good chance that the School Department will run a deficit “which will set off a series of events over the entire year.”

Nonetheless, Iannetta also voted with the majority, saying he wanted to be “educationally responsible.”

In the final vote, only Reall and Donald J. Cataldi voted against the measure, while Anthony Marciano, Palmieri, Martinelli, Iannetta and DaSilva supported it.

Support was unanimous for the third first and fifth grades at the Greystone School.

Denise Turcotte, a fifth grade teacher, noted that a year ago a decision was made to create a third fourth grade class because those students needed smaller classes, in part because of behavior problems.

Turcotte said forcing those students back into two classrooms could be traumatic for them.

Ottaviano said later that that keeping the third fifth grade and adding a third first grade might be accomplished without additional expense because the fifth grade teacher was already in place and the new first grade position could be covered in her plan to eliminate one of the three fourth grade classrooms.

Parents cheer the School Committee’s vote to start full-day kindergarten in North Providence this fall. The Providence Journal / Richard Dujardin rdujardi@projo.com / (401) 277-7384

Originally published by Richard C Dujardin, Journal Staff Writer.

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