MBUSD hosts Kindergarten Day
by Hibah Samad
The Manhattan Beach Unified School District is hosting its Annual Kindergarten Information Day, an event designed to help incoming and new families for the 2024-2025 school year with the transition to Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarten.
The program, which takes place January 20 from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at Grandview Elementary, is open to all families. The day begins with a meet and greet to allow new parents to meet principals and other parents from their child’s future potential school.
“Manhattan Beach Unified School District is a destination district that has focused on maximizing the academic success of all our students and the whole child for decades,” said Superintendent John Bowes. “When families attend our Kindergarten Information Day, they will see and hear firsthand why the strong and supportive MBUSD community is special. Our principals, teachers, and all of our support staff are focused on delivering academic excellence, personalized learning, and fostering a climate of care.”
The general information session will offer parents insight into the District’s programs, their children’s expectations, and the opportunities available. After the main session, families attend breakout sessions and meet with elementary school principals for a Q&A. There will also be a session dedicated to Transitional Kindergarten.
MBUSD Board President Cathey Graves says it’s important for first-time parents to know what to expect. She said the day offers families essential resources they will need to embark on their child’s educational journey within MBUSD.
“As part of the event, we will have a Kindergarten teacher provide a glimpse into a day in the life of a kindergartener, emphasizing the myriad experiences awaiting their child as a student in the District,” Graves said. “Kinder Info Day is very comprehensive, and we hope it will help our incoming families navigate this exciting and important time in their child’s life.”
Also in the line-up of speakers is the Executive Director of the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation (MBEF), Hilary Mahan, who will highlight the impact and support of MBEF to MBUSD schools. A portion of the program will also support parents with the enrollment process.
These types of events are even more important to the District due to a law Governor Gavin Newsom signed in 2021 that requires any school district operating a kindergarten also to provide a Transitional Kindergarten program. This means phasing in Universal Transitional Kindergarten (UTK) at California schools until it includes all of the state’s 4-year-olds by the 2025-26 school year.
For the 2024-2025 school year, students who turn five on or between September 2, 2024 – June 2, 2025, will be eligible to enroll in a TK program. Transitional Kindergarten classes are being offered at all five MBUSD elementary school sites to accommodate the UTK program.
All children who will be five years old on or before September 1, 2024 are eligible to enroll in Kindergarten. MBUSD new student online enrollment begins on January 22. Enrollment is a two-step process, including both an online registration form and an in-person documents submission component. MBUSD Inter-District attendance permit applications for students in grades TK-12 who reside outside the attendance boundaries of the Manhattan Beach Unified School District (MBUSD) and seek to be enrolled in the District are already being accepted by the District as of January 10, 2024.
All MBUSD elementary schools have received the California Distinguished Schools title. MBUSD serves approximately 6,200 students in Preschool through 12th grade. To find all MBUSD enrollment information, visit www.mbusd.org/enroll/. ER