Meck Pre-K’s registration opened Tuesday, one of four public pre-K options that exist in Mecklenburg County. It's the only one that has no income or special needs eligibility requirements.
The only requirement for Meck Pre-K is that students have to be 4 years old on or before Aug. 31 and live in Mecklenburg County.
Smart Start of Mecklenburg County President Michael Blackwelder said that in the past few years, they’ve noticed a spike in people applying early. He’s already seen a lot of applications on day one.
“So we do think we'll get a lot of applications fast," he said. "I'm not saying it will fill up immediately, because it won't. We keep registration open well into the following school year.”
Last year, the county funded 10 additional classrooms in the northern and southern parts of the county, responding to demand in those areas.
Meck Pre-K is one of four public pre-K options in Mecklenburg County, including the federally funded Head Start program and the CMS administered Bright Beginnings and NC Pre-K.
But Meck Pre-K is the only one without eligibility requirements based on things like income or academic need. The application is available online.
