Preschool seeks to bolster tuition assistance

The Encampment Preschool has begun collecting donations to bolster its tuition fund so the organization can continue to offer tuition reimbursement for students and families.

The preschool, located in the Encampment K-12 building, is not a part of the school district, but instead is a nonprofit organization which relies on donations to offer its services. The school offers a morning class for 3- to 4-year-old children, and an afternoon class for 4- to 5-year-old students, and is hoping to raise $10,000-$15,000 to defray tuition costs for all students.

There are four students in the afternoon class and seven in the morning class.

The nonprofit organization rents space from the Encampment K-12 school, and has access to everything inside the school, including library facilities and the playground. Because of the school board’s generosity, the pre-school can operate for less money, Cunningham said.

Being in the school facility also helps younger children prepare for school, she said, adding that by the time the children graduate from preschool and enroll in kindergarten, they are already familiar with the school, teachers and other students.

Currently, all students attend the preschool with tuition paid out of the tuition fund, according to Deb Cunningham, the school’s director. Every student currently attending does so for free, and has for the last several years, Cunningham said. That is due to the fundraising the school has done.

“If we didn’t have this tuition program, I can tell you’d we’d probably have half the kids we do,” Cunningham said. “It’s just hard for parents to afford it, and we want everybody to come to preschool.”

“Even parents who work would struggle (if it weren’t for the tuition fund),” she said. “They would pay, but they would still suffer.”

Cunningham said raising between $10,000 and $15,000 would be a good goal for the school, saying that amount would easily cover tuition for all current students.

The school is currently on a holiday fundraising drive, and any contributions are tax deductible, Cunningham said. Donations can be mailed to: Encampment Preschool, P.O. Box 718, Encampment, WY, 82325.