Lawrence Schools Foundation announced plans Monday to raise $135,000 for the district’s early childhood development program.

“We already have a grant for $35,000,” said foundation President Steve Glass, addressing a regular meeting of the Lawrence school board.

In recent years, the foundation has financed about one-third of the program’s budget.

Glass said he and others on the foundation’s board of directors hope to raise $100,000 in time for the start of the 2006-07 school year.

The program helps prepare children – most from low-income or single-parent families – for kindergarten.

Glass, who’s president of Lawrence Ready Mix, noted that 10 years ago, the district had one classroom set aside for early childhood development. Today, it has six.

Glass and foundation director Susan Esau played a DVD on the program and the fundraising effort. Plans call for airing the DVD on the district’s cable channel, Sunflower Broadband Channel 26.

Interested donors are encouraged to call Esau at 832-5000, ext. 108, or see the foundation’s Web site: www.lawrenceschoolsfoundation.org.

Also, the board:

¢ Endorsed without comment a wellness policy that’s expected to restrict the availability of sweets at school.

¢ Began a monthslong process for deciding which capital improvement projects have the most merit and might save the district the most money.

¢ Endorsed a new software package that allows teachers to apply for jobs online.

¢ Joined about 60 well-wishers at a barbecue and groundbreaking ceremony at South Junior High School, 2734 La.

Plans call for to building an all-new, two-story, 114,469-square-foot building in time for the start of the 2007-08 school year.

Eventually, the current 39-year-old building will be razed and turned into a parking lot.

The current building does not have windows.

“I think that will be what people notice most about the new building’s design – the sense of openness and light,” said Sean Zaudke, project manager and architect at Gould Evans Associates.