Full-Day Kindergarten: Board OKs $25 Million Elementary School

PLAINFIELD, IL — The District 202 Board of Education voted 5-2 Monday to proceed with a plan to implement full-day kindergarten district wide, approving the construction of an 18th elementary school at a projected cost of $25 million to create enough space for the program. Board members Heather Drake and Michael Robey voted against the proposal.

"They both stressed that they support the concept of and need for full-day kindergarten, but questioned the project's costs and preferred getting more information about other options," the district said in a press release.

"The District 202 community has identified full-day kindergarten as a high priority for many years," the district said. "However, the 17 current elementary schools do not have enough space to accommodate the estimated 1,500 students who would be eligible."

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Lane Abrell called the decision "a historic night for us in District 202. It is an exciting time and I want to thank the Board of Education for investing in the future of our students and families and moving this plan forward so that we can better serve our entire community,” he added in a press release.

“Parents have wanted full-day kindergarten since even before I first came to the district in 1997. This is an important step in our work to provide the best possible educational system for District 202 students and families,” he said.

District officials have been waiting for enrollment to decrease and finances to stabilize after the recession and years of unreliable state funding, according to the district.

“We certainly understand, respect and appreciate everyone’s concerns about finances,” Board of Education President Greg Nichols said.

For the past three years, Plainfield schools have offered limited full-day kindergarten, using a computer lottery to select 24 students at each campus — a total of 408 students — for the program.

The limited kindergarten program will continue until the 18th elementary school opens. According to the district, it could take two to three years to complete construction on the campus, which will be built on land already owned by the school district. The exact site has not yet been determined, according to the district.

The district offered these key points in reference to the project:

• The new building will be a full-service, K-5 elementary school.
• It will be similar in size and design to the last few elementary schools built in during the district's heavy growth period.
• It will house about 800 students.
• The new school will stabilize space requirements and assignments for several specialized programs that currently move to different buildings based on need and available space.
• The new school will cost about $25 million. However:
• The District will use a special "leasing" option and pay the bank $2.5 million a year for 10 years;
  • After 10 years, the district will take ownership of the property;
  • Personnel and operational costs will add about $2 million a year.