Brookfield school Supt. Toby Gibson is continuing to pursue his goal of launching a preschool program in the fall, but admitted the effort has a long way to go.

Gibson told the school board Jan. 13 that he continues to meet with the Trumbull County Educational Services Center and has identified three scenarios to start a preschool: creating a preschool program with existing funds, creating one that charges tuition, and having the ESC run the program.

promo“We kind of have to do our homework here,” Gibson said.

He said he also has reached out to see what it would take for Head Start to open a classroom in the district. Head Start is a federally funded program that promotes school readiness in children from low-income families. Head Start also offers services that promote health and social development.

There had been contacts with Head Start more than a year ago, but “That all fell through the cracks once COVID hit in March,” Gibson said.

The ESC is contacting the state to see if there might be funding available to help Brookfield create its preschool program, he said.

Gibson has spoken of preschool as a way to help students overcome the learning gap many typically have when they enter kindergarten, a gap that affects student progress for years afterward. He called preschool “a long-term solution.”