Explanation
Mayor Ginther’s vision for Columbus, America’s Opportunity City, is to create access to a high-quality pre-kindergarten education for every 4-year-old. Addressing early childhood learning means bringing awareness and resources to a critical learning stage in childhood development. Children who come to school ready to learn are more likely to succeed academically and in life.
Children who participate in high-quality pre-kindergarten experiences significantly improve their early literacy, language, and math skills. Ample evidence shows that children who enter school unprepared fall farther and farther behind. Students who get a poor start in their earliest years are likely to struggle in high school and subsequently, fail to graduate.
The purpose of Early Start Columbus is to expand high-quality pre-kindergarten services through partnerships with Columbus City Schools and community-based providers. The providers partnering in the Early Start Columbus Program have all demonstrated their ability to provide a high-quality pre-kindergarten education. All partnering providers have achieved at least a Silver rating in the State’s Step Up To Quality rating and improvement system. Providers were chosen from a competitive application process.
FISCAL IMPACT: This ordinance authorizes an expenditure of $5,950,000.00 from the 2025 Mayor’s Office of Education’s General Operating fund.
EMERGENCY DESIGNATION: Emergency designation is requested so that all contracts may be effective before the start of the 2025-2026 School Year.
Title
To authorize the Director of the Mayor’s Office of Education to enter into ESC summer programming contracts with high-quality pre-kindergarten organizations, selected via a competitive application process, to provide educational services as part of the 2025-2026 Early Start Columbus Program; to authorize the expenditure not to exceed $5,950,000.00 from the General Fund; and to declare an emergency. ($5,950,000.00)
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