KGUN 9 On Your Side, Tucson News, Weather & SportsMany want to keep AZ's all-day kindergarten

Many want to keep AZ's all-day kindergarten

Associated Press - March 21, 2010 2:14 PM ET

PHOENIX (AP) - Free full-day kindergarten is over for many schools around Arizona after state lawmakers permanently cut funding for it.

But parents, public-school districts and charter schools now are struggling to find ways to keep the program going. Some could stay open with a bare-bones staff and others will be available only to parents who are willing to pay for it themselves.

All-day kindergarten had a bumpy phased-in start. Funding was prodded into place by then-Gov. Janet Napolitano for the state's poorest schools in 2005 and for all schools by 2007. But the program was never popular with Arizona's Republican Legislature, with some calling it taxpayer-funded all-day baby-sitting.

The program's demise came March 12, when lawmakers cut $218 million in funding as part of budget-balancing efforts.

Information from: The Arizona Republic, http://www.azcentral.com

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