The city of Los Altos-run preschool program Tiny Tots is set to be replaced by a private business by the beginning of next school year, according to city manager Gabriel Engeland. Parents of current and past Tiny Tots students were devastated by the news and are already mobilizing to save the program.
Within the next month, the city will release a Request for Proposals to find a private business to operate a similar preschool service out of the same city-owned facilities. While Engeland told the Town Crier that the city would prioritize choosing a business plan with elements similar to that of the city-run program, many parents are concerned that a private business will not uphold the same level of quality and cost effectiveness that they have seen in Tiny Tots.
Engeland made the decision to end Tiny Tots because of the financial impact the program was having on the city. Last year, the city saw direct losses associated with the program between $180,000 to $200,000, with an additional $100,000 spent in overhead costs between facility maintenance and staff hours.
“Is there a reason, if we can provide a high-quality program through the private sector, that it would not be an equal substitute for the program that we have today, which would meet the cost needs of all the families while also not be a net loser of $250,000 annually for the Los Altos taxpayer?” Engeland said.
This is not the first time Tiny Tots has been up on the chopping block. In 2010, the Parks and Recreation Commission saved the over 50-year-old program from being axed by coming up with a financial solvency plan that would help the preschool come out of its $50,000 deficit by increasing tuition and bolstering marketing efforts to reach maximum classroom capacity. This is when the KinderPrep class was introduced to the program, increasing the age range for eligible students.
Current parents were shocked to find out last week that their kids’ preschool would not exist in the same form next year. Many of them balked at what seems like a huge decision not first going through the city council but Engeland said that it is typical for decision making surrounding a smaller parks and recreation program to not go through council discussion.
Parents like Stephanie Lin doubt that it’s possible for a private business to offer a service with the same level of quality and affordability for families. While Lin recognizes her family’s privilege, she highly values the way that families of different backgrounds and income levels get to socialize with each other in an equitable space.
“Oftentimes those with more wealth have the ability to send their children to expensive preschools with low student-teacher ratios,” Lin said. “However, Tiny Tots allows all members of our community to be afforded that opportunity. It’s an opportunity for families from different incomes to meet and interact in ways they otherwise might not have.”
Eduard Keller, a former Tiny Tots parent who hoped to enroll his younger child in the program next year, sees the preschool as more than just a good value for his money. Keller appreciated the close attention to students and the honesty afforded by the staff of Tiny Tots.
“If it goes private then the focus inevitably becomes about the profit they are able to generate – so bigger class sizes, streamlined teaching materials, more reliance on technology to ease burdens or to justify educators who are not as actively involved,” Keller said.
Keller and Lin both floated the idea of raising tuition to help alleviate some of the current deficit, but the city is saying it would not be enough. Engeland is also combating concerns that a new program will inherently not be of the same quality as the current one.
“We won’t take revenue generation (for the city) into account,” Engeland said. “Instead, we are going to look at things like cost to the families, teacher to student ratio, history of providing in similar settings and things like that. So, the idea is, to the extent that we have the ability, to try and keep the program to have the same look and feel as it has today.”
If no RFPs come through with criteria satisfiable to the city, they will reassess their plan, Engeland said.
The $300,000 not lost in annual revenue could go toward other city services funded by the city’s general budget. Engeland mentioned the increasing cost of the school crossing guard program and the desperate need for a new police building, a project which is projected to cost tens of millions of dollars and be funded by a bond measure, according to a 2022 report by the Los Altos Police Facility Subcommittee.
“We have enormous needs for critical items in the general fund, usually around public safety that haven’t been adequately funded,” he said.
Still, parents are organizing to save the Tiny Tots program. Parents are petitioning the city to delay the decision and explore other options to make the program less costly to the city.
“This program was one of the benefits that we enjoyed the most in the Los Altos community and to lose it would be a real shame, and many people feel similarly,” Keller said. “I wish everyone had the opportunity to take advantage of this program because it’s really excellent.”
To view the petition, visit losaltos.school.
