For less than $10 a week, high-quality preschool education is available for low-income families in Jackson County through the state-funded On My Way Pre-K program.
Applications for the 2021-22 school year are still being accepted by the Indiana Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning from families statewide who may be eligible.
For this school year, a child is eligible for an On My Way Pre-K voucher if they were 4 years old by Aug. 1 and plan to start kindergarten in the 2022-23 school year.
An eligible child must live in a household with income below 127% of the federal poverty level and have parents or guardians who are working, going to school, attending job training or searching for employment.
Information about what annual incomes qualify for the program can be found at in.gov/fssa/carefinder/on-my-way-pre-k/find-out-if-you-qualify.
A limited number of vouchers are available for children who live in a household with income up to 185% of the federal poverty level.
Also, the child must have either a parent or guardian who is working, attending job training or an educational program and looking for employment or a parent or guardian who receives Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income benefits.
For the second year, an easy-to-use online application called Early Ed Connect will serve as the application for both On My Way Pre-K and child care assistance provided in Indiana via the federal Child Care Development Fund.
Early Ed Connect offers the benefits of easier attachment of documents and notification of successful submission. A Spanish version and support for any technical issues also are available.
Kate Garrity, executive director of Child Care Network, said the regular tuition for preschool in Jackson County is $140 per week, which includes before and after care, snacks and lunch.
“For each child who qualifies for the On My Way Pre-K funding, we are reimbursed $132, so the families would only pay $8 per week,” Garrity said.
She said last year, the number of children enrolled in preschool was low, but this year, the numbers are up.
“Our classrooms are pretty much full except for the new one we’re opening at Cortland, and there are still a few spots open there,” Garrity said. “We’re excited for preschool to open next week and happy that our numbers are up from last year.”
Nearly 14,000 Hoosier children have attended pre-K through a grant from the On My Way Pre-K program since it began in 2015.
The program, which started as a five-county pilot and then expanded to 20 counties in 2017, became a statewide program in 2019. Jackson County was the only rural county among the five in the pilot program back in 2015.
OECOSL, a division of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, continues to partner with Purdue University on a longitudinal study of children who have participated in the program in an attempt to measure their success. It also updates the Indiana General Assembly every year on the program.
For assistance from an early learning referral specialist or for other questions about On My Way Pre-K, families may call 800-299-1627.
This past school year, 37 students were enrolled in On My Way Pre-K in Jackson County. That number was down from 58 students in 2019-20 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are currently 13 approved On My Way Pre-K providers in Jackson County. Families can search for an approved provider at childcarefinder.in.gov.
Approved pre-K programs may be located in a public or private school, a licensed child care center, a licensed home or a registered ministry as long as that program meets the quality requirements and is registered as an On My Way Pre-K Provider.
Families may choose from a program that is full day or partial day as well as from programs that end with the school year or continue through the summer.
“Our research shows that On My Way Pre-K children make higher gains than their peers in important aspects of school readiness,” said Marni Lemons, deputy director of communications for the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration.
Language comprehension, early literacy, executive functioning and a reduction in behavior problems in the classroom are some of the areas they’ve seen strides in for the children in the pre-K program, Lemons said.
“Not only is On My Way Pre-K positive for children, it is also positive for families,” she said. “More than half of the parents of previous On My Way Pre-K children we spoke to told us that having their child in the program allowed them to search for a new job, keep a current job or obtain better shifts at work.”
She said there currently is no set deadline, and they will continue enrolling children as long as they have space available for them.