Mostly clear. Low around 55F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph..

Mostly clear. Low around 55F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph.

Zane Tuller, 7, paints on an acrylic easel as his brother Daniel Tuller, 8, rinses paint from his hands during a 5 to ONE playgroup, a Great Start Collaborative program, at Lake Ann United Methodist Church Community Center. TCAPS announced Monday the district will offer the Great Start Readiness preschool program for the 2021-22 school year.

Zane Tuller, 7, paints on an acrylic easel as his brother Daniel Tuller, 8, rinses paint from his hands during a 5 to ONE playgroup, a Great Start Collaborative program, at Lake Ann United Methodist Church Community Center. TCAPS announced Monday the district will offer the Great Start Readiness preschool program for the 2021-22 school year.

TRAVERSE CITY — A free preschool program that was nearly dead in the water a year ago now is back afloat.

Traverse City Area Public Schools Superintendent John VanWagoner announced Monday night that the district will operate six Great Start Readiness Program classrooms for the 2021-22 school year.

The move comes after TCAPS cut the program, which offers free preschool services to lower-income families, last June in an effort to save the district $125,000. GSRP services at TCAPS were later revived when the district partnered with the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District, now known as Northwest Education Services, and received a $70,000 donation from the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation to offset any losses.

VanWagoner said as recently as last week that he was not sure TCAPS would offer the program next school year because financial questions remained. Recent movement from the state legislature and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to increase funding to GSRP gave VanWagoner and others at TCAPS the confidence to reinstate the program fully.

VanWagoner could not say if TCAPS will offer GSRP past 2021-22. That decision will come down to dollars and cents. VanWagoner said TCAPS is fortunate to have the money for the coming school year.

“The legislature has identified that it really costs just as much to educate a 4-year-old as it does a 5-year-old going into kindergarten,” VanWagoner said. “The dollars make the difference. As long as we have that — and even if we’re in a bit of a deficit, with some community partners’ help — we’re hopeful to be able to sustain that for the long run.”

TCAPS applied for six GSRP classrooms, each of which would serve 15-16 students. TCAPS operated seven classrooms two years ago.

VanWagoner is not yet sure what schools will house the programs, only to say that it will depend on where the enrolled students live and what space is available. He said officials expect to know how many slots they will have by mid July and will then work toward staffing the program.

TCAPS Board of Education trustees expressed their support for the decision, with Flournoy Humphreys saying it “feels good to have that coming back.”

Board Vice President Erica Moon Mohr said GSRP is vital to student achievement and having those children in TCAPS buildings is a positive, even if the district operates the program at a loss.

If GSRP does run at a deficit, VanWagoner said the district will look to find ways to make up for that.

“(GSRP) provides a critical service to some of our most at-need young students to make sure they are kindergarten ready,” VanWagoner said. “Unfortunately we live year to year by the budget, and I hope were not put back in a position where we have to make that decision.”

David Mengebier, president of the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation and member of the Great Start Collaborative executive team, is hopeful it won’t be necessary to raise another $70,000 to keep GSRP up and running at TCAPS. If the foundation’s help is needed, Mengebier said GSRP is a “top priority.”

“GSRP is providing access to quality preschool, and we have a real shortage of childcare,” Mengebier said. “Our mission is to improve the quality of life of people in northern Michigan and create a resilient and thriving community. Supporting early childhood education and childcare programs is consistent with our mission.”

Many parents are rejoicing at the news after fretting last summer. When TCAPS eliminated GSRP, families that relied on the program were left in limbo and scrambling to find childcare services they could afford.

Dana Tuller is a mother of five. Three of her children have already attended GSRP, and her oldest went through the Head Start program. Tuller’s youngest will begin GSRP this coming fall and she said she already applied for a slot in February.

Tuller said she was “shocked” by VanWagoner’s announcement.

“It’s going to be a big help for a lot of families that need childcare and can’t find it anywhere else,” she said. “We are very lacking in childcare in this area, right now. We need to do everything we can to build up those resources.”

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