The Central Kitsap School District hopes to keep the size of its all-day kindergarten program unchanged for the next school year, but enrollment and money from the state will determine what happens.

And despite the uncertainty about how many free slots will be offered next year, the district is encouraging parents to sign up their future kindergartners starting Feb. 22.

Currently the state pays all-day tuition in districts with the highest numbers of low-income students, despite research that indicates academic performance is enhanced by more intense early childhood education. Central Kitsap, on the other hand, pays for 338 of its 738 kindergarten students to attend the all-day program with no help from the state.

Superintendent Greg Lynch said the all-day programs are not a cure-all for the problems students face during their academic careers, but research shows the programs offer a head start that especially benefits children from families without the means to devote extra time to schoolwork at home.

It’s common to get kindergarten students who, despite being age 5, are developmentally at age 3, Lynch said.

“They start out at a huge deficit, that generally manifests itself time and again, and in some cases they never catch up,” he said.

“We would like to do more, but we can’t,” Lynch said, adding that although the district is recognized for its good work, because it has relatively fewer low-income students, it has taken a place in the back of the line for free all-day dollars from the state.

Full-day program tuition is about $2,800. The district has five schools with the free program, and six with what the district calls “tuition” programs, or all-day kindergartens that parents must pay for, although scholarships are available.

For the current school year 116 students are in the tuition programs, with 35 receiving scholarships. About 220 students attend traditional morning or afternoon half-day programs.

How the Legislature divvies the state’s dollars for education will affect the breadth of the program in the 2010-11 school year, and if the district receives less money from certain funds, there is a chance it will have fewer free all-day kindergarten slots next year, Lynch said.

But until the Legislature adjourns, expected March 11, the district is waiting.

“I won’t know that until we figure out what the budget situation looks like,” Lynch said.

Enrollment will also be a factor in the number of all-day classes offered. A class needs 19 students to be viable.

Kindergarten registration for the Central Kitsap School District starts Feb. 22, according to a statement from the district.

To register for kindergarten, a child must be 5 years old on or before August 31.

Please bring a copy of your child’s state issue birth certificate, proof of immunization and verification of your current address. The best time to register at your school is from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Families will notified by the end of May whether the all-day program will be offered at their neighborhood elementary school.

This year, the district offered the program free at Jackson Park, Clear Creek, Cougar Valley, Esquire Hills and Woodlands elementary schools, and the tuition program at Brownsville, Cottonwood, Emerald Heights, Green Mountain, PineCrest and Silver Ridge elementary schools.