One of the major challenges Mariposa County Unified School District has been faced with for over a year now is providing Transitional Kindergarten (TK) to the more rural, outlying areas of Mariposa County which include places such as El Portal, Greeley Hill and Yosemite Valley School.
Superintendent Jeff Aranguena provided an update to the current challenges.
Background
California’s education funding system, particularly the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), determines how state funds are allocated to school districts based on average daily attendance (ADA).
However, basic aid districts — districts that generate enough local property tax revenue to exceed their LCFF entitlement — do not receive the same standard LCFF funding.
Additionally, Necessary Small Schools (NSS), such as Greeley Hill, Yosemite Valley and El Portal, are funded through a separate formula due to their small size and geographic isolation.
As part of California’s push for universal pre-kindergarten, Transitional Kindergarten (TK) must be offered to all eligible four-year-olds by the 2025–26 school year.
While districts funded through LCFF receive funding based on enrollment, basic aid districts and NSS do not receive additional funding for TK students.
This creates significant financial inequities, particularly for rural districts like MCUSD, that are expected to meet the mandate without the necessary financial support.
Currently, MCUSD operates TK programs at Woodland Elementary and Mariposa Elementary Schools, meeting the requirement, but these schools are not NSS schools.
Expanding access to TK at NSS sites is financially unfeasible without additional funding, while the state’s regulations placed burdens on families and students in areas that operate NSS.
“Our goal is to help state leaders understand this oversight and continue advocating for a solution that ensures equitable access to TK for all students — especially in rural counties like Mariposa, where no four-year-old should have to ride a bus for two hours just to attend school,” said Aranguena.
Funding mechanism for NSS
NSS funding is based on school size and staffing configurations as defined in Education Code Sections 42280–42289.
For Necessary Small Elementary Schools (K–8), funding is determined by the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) teachers and minimum enrollment thresholds:
• One Teacher: One to 24 students — $268,348 (Yosemite Valley (3) = 22 ADA)
• Two Teachers: 25 to 48 students — $531,045 (Greeley Hill (3) = 24 ADA, El Portal (3) = 41 ADA)
• Three Teachers: 49 to 72 students — $793,973
• Four Teachers: 73 to 96 students —$1,056,670
The numbers above in bold represent the number of teachers currently budgeted for each NSS school site exceeds the allocation specified by the funding mechanism, with the additional staffing covered by MCUSD’s budget.
Under the state’s funding model, adding TK would require further funding for additional teachers, even though the sites are already operating above their NSS allocation.
This increase in staffing costs could surpass the current budget allocations, requiring supplemental funding from the district.
Current Status – AB 1391
Assembly Bill 1391, authored by Assemblymember Addis, aims to close the funding gap for basic aid districts and Necessary Small Schools (NSS).
If passed, the bill would allocate state funding specifically for TK students at these sites beginning in the 2025–26 fiscal year.
The funding would include the LCFF base grant, a base grant adjustment and a TK-specific add-on for every eligible TK student, regardless of a district’s LCFF, Basic Aid or NSS status.
The funding would be sourced from the General
Fund and count toward Proposition 98 minimum education spending guarantees.
Impact on NSS
Without the funding provided by AB 1391, the district’s NSS sites will continue to struggle to implement TK.
These schools have small student populations, so the cost of hiring even one TK teacher and aide is disproportionately high per student.
This makes it financially unsustainable to offer TK without additional funding. Although the state requires TK, MCUSD doesn’t receive the LCFF funding because of the NSS status, which means the district faces an unfunded mandate.
“As a result, we might have to cut other programs or staff, or even decide not to offer TK at all, risking compliance issues and gaps in early education,” Aranguena explained.
“Our rural families already face challenges with limited preschool options and long travel times. Without the funding from AB 1391, our youngest students in these remote communities may miss out on early education opportunities, which could widen achievement and opportunity gaps.”
Key changes in TK compared to the past
California’s goal to provide universal TK for all four-year-olds by the 2025–26 school year has lowered the eligibility age. Now, children who turn four by Sept. 1 can attend, replacing the previous cutoff of five years old.
Districts like Mariposa, which cover large geographic areas, are more heavily impacted by this change. The shift affects teacher qualifications, classroom practices and facility needs.
“In the past, TK classes could combine younger children with older students, such as in TK-K or TK-K-1st grade combos,” Aranguena said.
“Now, due to the significant developmental differences between four-year-olds and older children, combining these age groups presents challenges.”
Impacts on staff
Teaching four-year-olds comes with unique instructional and developmental demands compared to teaching older TK or kindergarten students.
Younger children need more developmental support, such as help with toileting and emotional regulation, and benefit from play-based, hands-on learning, which may require additional training and classroom support for teachers.
In addition, TK classes are required to have a 1:10 adult-to-student ratio with a maximum of 24 students per class, requiring more paraprofessionals and aides.
Facility Needs for TK
The expansion of TK creates challenges for schools in terms of facility needs. Schools need to reconfigure classrooms to meet the developmental needs of younger children, such as providing open spaces and age-appropriate furniture and meet the state’s requirements.
Restrooms and outdoor play areas must also be upgraded to accommodate younger students and safe drop-off zones and adequate storage for TK materials will be required.
“For districts like ours, especially at our NSS sites, meeting these facility demands without additional funding is a significant challenge,” Aranguena said.
“As superintendent, I have been actively involved from the beginning in informing our partners in Sacramento about the impact of this issue on our Necessary Small Schools and advocating for AB 1391, which is essential to securing funding for TK in our district.
“This is a complex issue, but through ongoing collaboration with state officials and key stakeholders, we are making significant progress.
“The bill has gained strong support, including from labor groups, which underscores the growing recognition of the need for equitable access to early education in our rural communities.
“The passage of AB 1391 is crucial for meeting the state’s TK mandate while addressing the unique challenges we face. Moving forward, continued advocacy for this legislation is vital to closing the funding gap and ensuring that all children, particularly those in our most remote areas like Greeley Hill, El Portal, and Yosemite, have access to high-quality early education.”
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