By Seth Boyes,

Transitional kindergarten teacher Janet Falck spoke Monday in support of maintaining the Decorah School District’s current TK program. The Decorah School Board took no action on the issue, but the topic was discussed at length. (Photo by Seth Boyes)
The Decorah Community School Board was largely united Monday night in their opposition to potentially cutting the district’s transitional kindergarten program. No formal action was taken during the board meeting, but the topic was discussed at length as school officials consider the potential effect of projected enrollment numbers.
“I would not be in favor of cutting TK and moving those students more quickly through kindergarten, because I think we’re going to end up paying for it later, financially and in terms of students learning,” Decorah School Board member Carole Sand said.
Decorah Schools currently offers five sections of standard kindergarten and one section of transitional kindergarten, serving a combined total of about 120 children grouped into classes of 18-20 students. Elementary Principal Rick Varney said an estimated 117 students in the community will be eligible to begin kindergarten during the 2025-2026 school year, yet the district expects only about 92 to enroll — a projected drop of about 30 students compared to this year’s numbers. In addition, Decorah School Superintendent Tim Cronin said the district screens students for entry into its TK program, using recommendations from daycares and preschools as well as a scoring system, and he said the district receives about 28 requests each year from families hoping to enroll their child in Decorah’s TK program — a number he noted is too many for the district’s lone section of TK but too few to create a second section.
“There’s always disappointment every year when children don’t get into TK,” Cronin said. “But we don’t have enough for two sections.”
The district’s administrative team agrees its TK program is beneficial to students, Cronin said, but he and other school officials felt they needed to at least discuss potential changes light of expected enrollment.
Full article available in the February 13 Decorah Leader.
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