Free Tuition Qualifiers

Children must meet one or more of the at-risk criteria listed below and be enrolled by September 20.

Read KSDE Preschool At-Risk Criteria

1. Qualifies for Free Lunch.  The student qualifies for free meals under the National School Lunch Program on September 22. 

2. Single Parent Families. The custodial parent is unmarried on the first day of school.

3. Foster Care or Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF) referral. At any point between the time of enrollment and Count Day, the child is in the custody of the secretary for children and families. This may include foster care, custodial grandparents/kinship care, or other out-of-home placement. For children referred by DCF, the reason for referral must describe the need for the child to attend the Pre-K program or receive the early childhood service and be documented and signed by the DCF agent.

4. Teen Parents.  At least one parent was a teenager (19 or younger) when the child was born.

5. Either parent is lacking a high school diploma or GED.  At least one parent is lacking a high school diploma or a GED on the first day of school.

6. English Language Learner.  The student must qualify for bilingual weighting and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) services must be provided, and forms must be in the child’s file. 

7. Lower than expected developmental progress in at least one of the following areas:  cognitive development; physical development; communication/literacy; social emotional/behavior; adaptive behavior/self-help skills.  Based on appropriate and valid assessment results, the developmental progress of the child has been determined by a trained professional to be lower than typically expected for his/her chronological age, yet above what would be considered eligible for special education services (based on the procedural manual and guidance materials of specific assessment instruments). Scores that fall at or below the 40th percentile indicate ‘at-risk’.

8. Child qualifying for migrant status.  A copy of the certificate of eligibility must be on file.

9. Children who experience chronic or episodic homelessness. Residence of homeless student while homeless must be completed in the KIDS Collection System as determined by local educational liaison.