Rich Minder isn’t waiting until he takes a seat on the Lawrence school board to brandish deep-felt opposition to centralizing the district’s preschool programs at vacated East Heights School.

Minder, who joins the board in July, said transferring preschool programs from three elementary schools, Kansas University and a district building at 1919 Del. to East Heights would make it more difficult for families to participate.

Specifically, he said, placing the Readiness Program for 4-year-old, at-risk children in one location would “ghetto-ize” that program and make the district a leader in economic segregation of Lawrence’s children.

“It’s just hard for me to imagine that somebody can figure these kids and their families are suddenly going to benefit from having all the poor kids at East Heights,” Minder said. “It would be beneficial if, from an early age, people thought about moving away from a divided city along economic lines.”

He urged board members in writing and in an interview to spare no effort to keep preschool programs dispersed.

“It’s a good system. Why screw it up?” Minder said.

His position on the early childhood consolidation, as well as his approach in expressing those views, infuriated some board members.

“I’m astounded anybody would suggest … Lawrence schools or programs need to be situated there forever,” board member Mary Loveland said.

Board President Scott Morgan said the district wasn’t required to provide any type of preschool academic program.

“Beyond that,” he said, “the district tries to work with parents, but it cannot lose sight of its primary moral and legal responsibility of educating kids in a K-12 situation.”

Moving to East Heights

The school board gave final authorization in May to stop using East Heights, Centennial and Riverside as elementary schools. Riverside will be sold and Centennial mothballed, but the board’s intention is to turn East Heights into a preschool hub.

Cris Anderson, coordinator for early childhood programs in the district, said about 150 children were likely to enroll by the time classes start in August.

“It’s allowing us to have an opportunity to have multiple resources we use in our programs to be together,” she said.

She also said there would be financial savings to the district by having its preschool offerings in one location.

Under the current plan, the facility would house Parents as Teachers, Even Start Family Literacy, Readiness Program, Head Start and a special-education class now at the KU Dole Center.

Readiness Program classrooms financed by a combination of state and private funding at Centennial, Pinckney, Woodlawn and East Heights schools will be at East Heights. Parents as Teachers and Even Start will move out of the 1919 Del. facility. Head Start will remain in a portable classroom already at East Heights.

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“I feel really good that Head Start is going to be able to stay there,” Anderson said.

She said reaction to the move from parents in the program had been mixed.

A majority of parents who enrolled their children seem to appreciate that the programs survived budget cutting in the district. Several parents expressed disappointment at removal of classrooms from neighborhood schools.

“We worked to be an integral part of the schools,” Anderson said. “Then, all of a sudden, we’re not there. It’s a loss.”

Conversion of the elementary school into a center suitable for preschoolers will cost the district about $12,000. Secondary doors must be cut in classrooms and fire alarms modified to meet licensing requirements.

Anderson said the goal was to be moved into the former elementary building before Aug. 14.

Domino effect

Consolidation of the elementary schools means additional students will enroll at New York and Cordley schools.

As a result, the district will reclaim classrooms loaned to Brookcreek Learning Center for preschool classes at New York and Cordley and for an after-school program for kindergartners at New York.

Esther Kottwitz, Brookcreek’s executive director, said that would end the center’s cooperative relationship with the district that started 10 years ago at New York. Cordley came online in 1997.

“It’s been very successful,” Kottwitz said. “It’s been a real positive set-up.”

She estimated parents of 35 to 40 children who had been in these Brookcreek state-subsidized classes at New York and Cordley would be left in limbo.

Personal finance and transportation issues will make it hard for them to find suitable alternatives, she said.

“There’s going to be a gap,” Kottwitz said.

Minder, who works for the Success by 6 organization in Lawrence, which supports community-based preschool activities, said the ouster of Brookcreek was an example of the school district ignoring its responsibility to collaborate with nonprofit organizations on projects that benefit future and current students.

“What we’re not really accounting for: What is the impact on the families?” he said.

On a personal note

Minder said elimination of the Brookcreek sites would erode the ability of parents to educate their children in neighborhoods where they live.

“A geographically dispersed early childhood delivery system makes more sense in terms of access for families, just in general, but especially for low-income families,” he said.

Minder said he would personally feel the loss of Brookcreek’s presence at New York School.

Instead of having his kindergartner and preschooler at New York, he wrote in an e-mail sent to the school board, the consolidation will split his children between New York and East Heights. Without the after-school program for kindergarten students at New York, an alternative site will have to be found for his daughter.

He wrote: “I am sharing this with you because, as I have mentioned on previous occasions, I am very concerned that we as a district make every effort not to alienate and disenfranchise families that have a hard enough time of it as it is without jerking them around.”

Several board members were irritated by Minder’s e-mail.

Board member Leni Salkind said she interpreted the text as an appeal to fix his personal problems rather than address broader community concerns.

“He sounded to me like it was for his own personal reasons,” she said. “That’s an awkward place to be. I don’t know we can change it because Rich is going to find it difficult.”