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Early Education
About
Our Staff | How We Are Funded | Commitment To Community
Our Staff
- Director - Cheryl Caldwell
- Manager - John Crawford
- Accountant - Angela Perea
- Secretary II - Rosie Nicholls
- Office Support II - Maddie Henninger
- Secretary II - Terri Garcia
- Early Education Specialist - Cathrine Floyd
- Early Reading First - Jane Walsh
Head Start Personnel:
- Project Coordinator - Jan Burke
- Supervisor, FLS - Stephanie David
- Education Coordinator - Diana Rollerson
- Health Coordinator - Lisa Golden-Ipson
- Health RN - Thuy Nguyen
- Family Liaison - Dianne Cooks
- Specialist - Nydia Gonzales
- Specialist - Pam Guerra
- Specialist - Karen Labuda
- Specialist - Irma Martinez
- Specialist - Fernando Perez Soto
Early Education Instructional Specialists - ECE
- Renee Cisneros
- Lucy Davis
- Tiffany Hansen
- Katherine Klesmit
- Celine Marquez
- Sheila Deacon
Early Education Instructional Specialists - ERF
- Monica Lobato-Fox
- Carla Piazza
How We Are Funded
Preschool
In addition to parent tuition, DPS uses several funding sources –local, state and federal – to provide free or significantly reduced price preschool to children in Denver. Denver Preschool Program, passed by Denver voters in 2006, provides tuition credits to 4 year olds of any Denver resident interested in attending preschool. These credits can be used with any provider, public or private. DPS requires participation in Denver Preschool Program and the credits are already included in the price of tuition at DPS.
The state and federal government also provide significant funding for preschool in DPS. The Colorado Preschool Program provides funds for at-risk children to attend preschool. DPS runs several HeadStart and Early Reading First programs – federal programs targeted to help at-risk children – at select schools across the district.
Kindergarten
The first half of the Kindergarten day is mandatory in the state of Colorado and is funded – just like higher grades – by the State of Colorado. Full-day Kindergarten is optional and DPS uses several funding sources, in addition to parent tuition, to provide free or significantly reduced price Kindergarten to children in Denver. A Mill Levy, passed by Denver voters in 2002, provides funding for at-risk classrooms. In an effort to fully fund Kindergarten for the entire school day, the State of Colorado provides funds for at-risk children as well.
Commitment To Community
In addition to staff actively involved in the early education community in the city, Denver Public Schools Early Education Department provides state funded preschool slots to about 20 community sites around the city of Denver.
