HCPSS to Expand Full-Day Pre-K to Cradlerock Elementary School

August 16th, 2017

The Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) will now offer full-day prekindergarten (Pre-K) at Cradlerock Elementary School for the 2017–2018 school year. Funding for the program is provided by the Maryland State Department of Education through a Federal Prekindergarten Expansion Grant. Cradlerock will become the seventh HCPSS school with a full-day Pre-K program.

“This grant will enable us to expand a program that is critical to closing the opportunity gap,” said Interim HCPSS Superintendent Dr. Michael J. Martirano, who has stressed the importance of early childhood education. “I am proud that we can fulfill our obligation as educators by helping our youngest students prepare for success in kindergarten and beyond.”

HCPSS has received the Federal Prekindergarten Expansion Grant through the Maryland State Department of Education for the past two years. When HCPSS reapplied this year, additional funding was requested to expand full-day Pre-K to Cradlerock Elementary School. The grant, which includes both state and federal funds, provides continuation for the full-day Pre-K programs at Laurel Woods and Phelps Luck elementary schools.

Bryant Woods, Running Brook, Stevens Forest and Talbott Springs elementary schools were the first HCPSS schools to offer full-day Pre-K programs. Initially funded through the HCPSS operating budget, the program was expanded to additional schools when the grant funding became available.

The grant supports high-quality programming with funding support for staffing, professional learning and instructional materials. The grant is for one year and HCPSS will continue to reapply each year to ensure continued funding.

The Office of Early Childhood Programs is working closely with the administration and staff at Cradlerock Elementary School, including the Judy Center, to plan Pre-K implementation for the 2017–2018 school year.