Unable to Match Grant, Cranston Forced to Decline All-Day K Money

Any excitement for a recent Rhode Island Department of Education $100,000 grant to start all-day kindergarten in Cranston has fizzled out.

The school district will have to decline the grant because the district is unable to put up matching funds — a stipulation that must be met for the grant.

That's what came out of what ended up being a brief and discouraging School Committee meeting last night that would have stung more if not for the fact Cranston Public Schools' have grown accustomed to being under constant fiscal constraint. 

Even with additional state aid, School Committee members Thursday night said there wouldn't be enough money to start with the four classrooms of all-day kindergarten, nor does the district have the resources to maintain the program.

School Committee member Stephanie Culhane said some people feel short changed by RIDE and the "funding was a phase in. [It can't] be done at this time.

"We support all-day K but without funds and commitment by those that hold the money, it can't be done," Culhane said. "It's very sad for our kids."

Cranston got the most money out of the four districts getting funding. The others were Exeter-West Greenwich, getting $45,000; Glocester, getting $33,000; and Woonsocket, which will receive $72,928.

The money was made available through the Full-Day Kindergarten Accessibility Act, a law passed in 2012 by the state legislature.