Amherst’s Early Education Center Prepares Children for Kindergarten

Report on the Meeting of the Amherst School Committee, April 15, 2025

This meeting was held over Zoom and was recorded.

Present
Jennifer Shiao (Chair), Sarah Marshall, Irv Rhodes, Deb Leonard, and Bridget Hynes.

Early Education Center Serves as Bridge to Kindergarten for 3- to 5-Year-Olds
Elizabeth Burns, Director of the Early Education Center located at Crocker Farm school, gave a presentation on the longstanding program to the Amherst School Committee. The Early Education Center serves as a bridge between the Early Intervention program (for those ages 3 and under) and kindergarten for children with disabilities. The center’s mission is “to provide a safe, nurturing, and developmentally appropriate environment where anti-bias and social-emotional learning are valued. We support children in developing essential skills that help build a positive self-concept and resiliency, and that provide a foundation for successful, lifelong learning. We ensure accessibility to all students through the provision of individualized accommodations, supports, and therapeutic services.”

Although it shares some staff with Crocker Farm Elementary school, the center is mostly a self-contained program that serves young children from Amherst and Pelham who have individual education programs (IEP). The center has five teachers, 16 paraprofessionals, and part-time therapists for occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech and language therapy, and visual and hearing therapy. It has its own budget.

The center is a legally mandated program. It currently serves 104 students and families, with 83 students enrolled and 14 who drop in or are community-based. In addition, there are 30 peer partners, students without disabilities who attend the program. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) requires that there be at least one more child without an IEP than there are children with IEPs to be considered an inclusive program. 

Children in the program are on the autism spectrum, are hearing or vision impaired, or have problems with communication, developmental delays, physical disabilities, or adverse health conditions. Burns said that the peer partners often need support, also. Some have been asked to leave other preschools because of behavioral issues or because they don’t speak English. 

The program meets four days a week in half-day sessions.. Tuition is income based, with 30% of families qualifying for free tuition. Only 20% pay the full tuition of $8 per hour. The rest pay a reduced rate.

Fridays are used for staff meetings and to complete evaluations of children for possible need of services. In addition to its educational programs, the center does testing for disabilities as recommended by pediatricians or requested by families. These evaluations are extensive to allow the center staff to get to know the families and children well. This year staff has done more than 64 evaluations on referrals from the Department of Public Health for children in the early intervention program, pediatricians, community preschools or daycare centers, or families concerned that their child may be on the autism spectrum. There are 19 evaluations currently in progress. Although there is a waiting list for peer partners, the program is required to provide services for those with IEPs.

Burns concluded that the numbers of children in need of services continue to grow, but the center’s space, staff, and budget haven’t changed in a long time. She stated that early intervention before elementary school has been proven to work and is less expensive than meeting students’ needs later.

FY 2025 Budget on Target
The school committee received a third quarter budget update from Finance Director Shannon Bernacchia. Bernacchia said that overall the schools were in good shape, spending 66% of the total budget in the first three quarters of the year. However, special education costs are running 348% above the budgeted amount, even after state aid. Bernacchia said that this was due to the unanticipated influx of special needs students. Legal expenses are also over budget chiefly due to the recently completed departmental audits and planning for the move of the sixth grade to the middle school in 2026. Also, transportation costs are high because the district had to purchase two used school buses in the fall, and that was not in the budget. 

The meeting ended with an executive session about pending litigation.