Murray pre-k gets a home

By Mark Millican

markmillican@daltoncitizen.com

CHATSWORTH — After 13 years of preparing children for their entry into the world of academics at several locations, the Murray County pre-kindergarten program now has a home.

Wednesday will not only be the first day of school in Murray County but also the first day the Pre-K Center program will be under one roof. The center now has its own wing at Bagley Middle School since the school system’s sixth-graders are returning to the elementary schools.

“We’re looking forward to it,” said Jennifer Jones, the site director. “It’s going to be a positive move for us. Now our teachers don’t feel like they’re an island at the elementary schools, but we’re all together. It will also cut down on our costs by being able to share materials.”

Allison Oxford, the director of instructional support services for Murray schools, says pre-k helps children get “engaged” in academics before they hit their first school year in kindergarten.

“Early involvement is crucial to an increased graduation rate,” she said. “We want kindergartners to come to school ahead and ready to learn, and to make the school system part of their family culture, all to eventually increase the graduation rate.”

Oxford added that the Murray system decided to send sixth-graders back to elementary schools this year since studies showed that math scores were better when they were not in the middle school setting.

The pre-k program has been at capacity with 320 students since early May. Twenty students are in each class, and the wing at Bagley accommodates 16 classrooms and some storage space. There is a waiting list of 25.

The Bagley site has separate drop-off and parking on the Highway 286 side away from the middle school area. Entrance to the wing cannot be accessed by middle school students, and the pre-k’ers will eat breakfast in their rooms, enjoy a mid-morning snack, and eat lunch after the older kids have cleared out of the cafeteria.

“It’s been the goal of Dr. (Vickie) Reed (superintendent) to have a Pre-K Center for all the schools since the inception,” said Oxford. One of Reed’s positions before becoming superintendent in November 2006 was curriculum director, where she first became involved in pre-k.

“Dr. Reed has been a tremendous supporter of the pre-k program,” said Dean Donehoo, director of administrative services. “She has gone after (classroom) space for them every time it has become available.”

“We’re excited,” Reed said. “It’s an opportunity for us to provide more services. For example, our three resource coordinators do not have to travel from school to school now but can be concentrated in one place. They will also be able to help provide more community services to the families of our kids in the program.”

Pre-k funding statewide goes back to approval of the Georgia Lottery in November 1992. Through Bright from the Start, the state agency that distributes lottery proceeds, Murray County received $1.4 million in program funds and an additional $100,000 grant for the three resource coordinators in the 2008 fiscal year. Although the state pre-k program does not require certified teachers, the Murray system does, and kicked in $11,000 over and above the lottery money.

Parents can take their children to the elementary school of the district where they live, then a pre-k staff member rides a bus with the children to Bagley and back in the afternoon to the after-school program.

“In this way, the students get used to the school where they’ll be attending kindergarten,” Oxford said.

Sheri Higgins has spent six years as a pre-k teacher at Spring Place. “It feels good being with all the other pre-k teachers and getting their ideas, and seeing all the kids together,” she said.

There have also been changes at other campuses. Murray County High has gotten fresh paint throughout, plus numerous renovations in everything from classrooms to the fieldhouse.

Bagley Middle has had smart boards installed in two dozen classrooms, scorer stands installed for baseball and football, and maintenance such as tile repairs and light fixtures replaced. Gladden has had mobile units underpinned, water coolers replaced and doors installed.

Elementary schools have likewise had maintenance issues addressed, everything from “pencil sharpeners to carpet replacement,” said Bill O'Hearon, director of facilities and construction.

“We had nine pages of requests from principals and staff,” he said, “and we’ve completed 95 percent of them. Work on the gym roof at Spring Place (after a recent accident there) started back on Saturday and will take six days to complete. But there will be no children in there while they’re working.”

O’Hearon said the price tag for the renovations over the summer came in at a little over $200,000. The roof for the New Beginnings facility on Green Street costs approximately $15,000, since most of it was covered with shingles left over from the Old Rock Building project.