The Garden City Board of Education has decided to hold a public forum to discuss the possibility of instituting a full-day kindergarten program in September, announced School Board President Kenneth Monaghan at the April 11th work session. The public will be allowed to speak at the forum, which will be held on Tuesday, April 19, at 7:30 p.m. in the Middle School cafeteria.

"The Board remains convinced that more time for students is a good thing," said Monaghan. He said the Board believes that the program has improved since the change to an extended-day program was made last September, but there is room to make it stronger. According to Monaghan, administrators are working on changes that will adjust the schedule so students are in the classroom more and will still receive individualized attention.

Monaghan said the Board is carefully weighing all of the arguments made by parents who are against the move, especially those who have argued that a full-day program is too demanding and exhausting for children. Monaghan responded that the program will be structured to alleviate as much stress as possible. He mentioned that the district is looking at possibly phasing in the new program so that students do not begin in September with a full-day schedule.

Monaghan denied that the changes are being considered for budgetary reasons. "This is only being done because we think it's the right thing to do in terms of the education of the children," he said. The district would receive $59,384 in state aid if they instituted a full-day kindergarten program. Superintendent Dr. Stephen Leitman has said at a past meeting that the money is not very significant when the overall budget is considered.