How Act 166 will work
When a school district partners with a Private Community Pre-K, a written contract is developed between the school district and the Private Community Pre-K. For 2023/24, $3764 per registered pre-K student is given directly to the pre-K provider that you have chosen for 10 hours a week and for 35 weeks. NOTE: Tuition Rates are illustrative only. The funds must be applied for a MINIMUM of 35 weeks for full-time (52 week) enrollment per VT Agency of Education guidelines. Some programs may also choose to apply the Act 166 over 42 weeks of the program rather than the District school year (September thru June) if the family is enrolled full-time.
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FULL-TIME (Based on 52 weeks, 5 full-days) PART-TIME (Based on 35 weeks, 3 half-days)
Tuition charged by Program (full-time) $250/week Tuition charged by Program (part-time) $35.85/half-day
Total Tuition $13000 Total Tuition (3 half-days min 3.5 hrs/day) $107.54/week less: Act166 Funds of $3764/year = $ 9236/yr less: Act166 Funds of $3764/year =$107.54/week
Charge per week paid by Family (35wks) $142.46/week Charge per week paid by Family NO CHARGE
Charge per week paid by Family (17 wks) $250.00/week
Part time & Part-week Programs
As long as your child is enrolled in a program for at least 10 hours per week for 35 week the program will receive up to $3764. That means you can enroll for AM or PM pre-K programs that run for more than 10 hours a week. A program may charge you only $3764 for those 10 hours and therefore there will not be any charge to your family.
Child Care Assistance and Act 166 Funds
Enrolled for part-year
Under Act 166, PreKindergarten education is an entitlement for all 3, 4 and 5 year old children not yet enrolled in Kindergarten. Annual tuition may be prorated to reflect the number of weeks the child is enrolled. Similarly if your child withdraws before the end of the school year, the annual tuition may be prorated to reflect the number of weeks the child was actually enrolled.
Program is Outside School District
If your family is also eligible for child care assistance from the Department for Children and Families (DCF) you continue to be eligible for $3764 per child for 10 hours of prekindergarten education. The child care provider would not be allowed to bill you for the 10 hours per week of prekindergarten education but will use this to offset the co-pay parents are charged by the program for full-time child care.
Example:
Tuition - fulltime $250/week
Child Care assistance $130/week
Co-Pay $ 120/week
less: Act 166 Funds $ 107.54/week
Remaining Co - Pay $ 12.46/week
Parents may choose to enroll their child in a public prekindergarten program in the school district of residence, in a public prekindergarten program in another school district, or in any pre-qualified provider within Vermont. You can find a prequalified program HERE
Some school districts may opt to apply for Act 166 region. If this is approved by the VT Department of education then the Act 166 funds can only be used in a program within that Region. For the 2023/24 there are not currently any preK regions.