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New Mecklenburg Pre-K Program Still Has Hundreds Of Openings

Mecklenburg County is offering another pre-kindergarten program this year, designed to reach more 4-year-olds of working parents.  The non-profit overseeing the program says its having a hard time filling spots before classes begin in October.  Smart Start told WSOC-TV that only 288 of the 600 spots have been filled.

County Commissioner Matthew Ridenhour told the TV station the county will monitor demand for the program, before any decision to expand it.

“We just need to make sure that we are not putting a lot of money into a program before we have measured acceptance of the program by the community,” Ridenhour said.

Commissioners approved nearly $9 million for Meck pre-k in June, as an effort to increase economic mobility. Meck Pre-k is free to low-to-moderate income families. Head Start operates its own pre-k program, but the income cutoff for that is lower.