CONCORD, Calif. (AP) — A year before I-Ting Quinn’s son was old enough for kindergarten, she and her husband had the option to enroll him in “transitional kindergarten,” a program offered for free by California elementary schools for some 4-year-olds.
Instead, they kept their son, Ethan, in a private day care center in Concord, California, at a cost of $400 a week.
Transitional kindergarten’s academic emphasis was appealing, but Ethan would have been in a half-day program, and options for afterschool child care were limited. And for two parents with hectic work schedules in the hospitality industry, there was the convenience of having Ethan and his younger brother at the same day care, with a single stop for morning drop-off and evening pickup.
“Ethan is navigating changes at home with a new younger brother and then possibly a new school where he is the youngest,” Quinn said. “That doesn’t even include the concerns around drop-off and pickups, including transportation to and from his class to afterschool care at a different location. It is just a lot to consider.”
Crews turn sights to removing debris from ship's deck in Baltimore bridge collapse cleanup
VOX POPULI: Seven years on, the Moritomo Gakuen scandal still unexplained
Boeing tells pilots to check seats after LATAM plane incident
US China updates: Beijing sanctions Lockheed Martin, Raytheon for Taiwan sales
American Express profits jump 34%, helped by jump in new customers, higher spending
Israeli parliament approves amended 2024 budget to fund Gaza war
VOX POPULI: Young texters have rendered punctuation marks obsolete
VOX POPULI: Our anger must never cool over ‘vital’ political fund
Tory Susan Hall closes the gap on Sadiq Khan with a fortnight until London mayoral election
Chinese comedy group punishment sends chills through arts sphere
Todd, Julie Chrisley appeal bank fraud and tax evasion convictions
Clandestine lab found during search for 'dangerous' suspect in violent kidnapping