Pasadena Unified Considers Hiking Fees for Early Childhood Education Program

[Updated April 23, 2014 | 3:00 p.m.]   The Pasadena Unified Board of Education will consider a recommendation by Superintendent Jon Gundry to increase fees for its Early Childhood Education Programs at Thursday night’s Board meeting.

The recommendation cites increased operational costs and state guidelines as the impetuses behind the proposed $50 per month fee hike.

The Full Fee rate for part-time PUSD childcare would increase to $430 monthly while the current full-time rate of $750 would increase to $800.

Pasadena Unified Director of Communications Adam Wolfson said the vast majority of Pasadena Unified students enrolled in the programs “are completely subsidized by the state.”

The fee increase only would affect non-subsidized students, of which there are 74 — 17 of whom are already at the higher rate. Wolfson said only 57 students would be directly impacted by the full fee increase.

The proposed fee increase would cover recent staff raises and increased staffing to meet state regulations regarding teacher-child ratios, and align the department with state educational codes.

According to the recommendation, the Child Development programs must retain the correct teacher–child ratios and align the hours of care and fees with the state-subsidized reimbursable rates, “in order to sustain quality and remain in compliance with state guidelines.”

Child development contractors for the District are required to maintain at least an 1:8 adult -child ratio, and 1:24 teacher-child ratio, at a minimum in all its centers.

In addition, the State Education Code requires that Child Development must charge fees for self-supporting students at an equal or higher rate than the state reimbursement rate.

“As state reimbursement rate increases annually, our program fees will need to be adjusted accordingly,” said the recommendation.

Currently, a comparison of full fee childcare in the Pasadena school district and its state subsidized childcare revealed that the current childcare fees are below state requirements.