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Educational Service (PK)

Educational Service: School Directory Management Portal

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Educational Service is a statement provided on the School Directory Management Portal that allows public schools to select whether or not they provide PK services.

The statement reads: "PK (Pre-Kindergarten) is a code, signifying students who:
  • have not reached the age for first grade (aged 3, 4 or 5), and
  • are not enrolled in K4 or KG, and
  • have an Individual Education Plan (IEP), and
  • receive primary educational services from the LEA / Agency."

The statement is followed by the question: "Does this school offer this service?"

Schools may then select Yes or No using a radio button. 

USES: This data element is used to correctly identify schools entered into the School Directory Management portal that are required to provide PK services under federal and state requirements. This information is then reflected on the School Directory Public web application.

PK

PK (Pre-Kindergarten) is a code, signifying students who: have not reached the age for first grade (aged 3, 4 or 5), and are not enrolled in K4 or KG, have an IEP, and receive primary educational services from the LEA / Agency. PK is not a grade level, as defined by state statute 115.02.

Students who have an IEP are not in a “program.” If they have an IEP they receive special education supports and services. In terms of students with IEPS who are in a PK service, this could include students who are aged 3, 4 or 5 because they can still receive special education services without needing to be enrolled in a four-year-old or five-year-old kindergarten grade.

Compulsory age in Wisconsin is six-years-old (6).

As per state statutes, LEAs (districts) are allowed to provide pre-kindergarten classes to children who are less than four years of age as the district prescribes. In terms of data collection, DPI is obligated to collect all required data resulting from public (state) and federally funded school business. Additionally, DPI wants to know what our LEAs are doing/offering for the students of Wisconsin to support our DPI Mission and Vision.

PK records must be reported to WDP for students that meet all of the PK Criteria:

  • regardless of participation in other programs (e.g., Head Start) and
  • regardless of enrollment in a grade.

On the School Directory Management Portal, the Educational Service (PK) question is asked to the following school types:

  • All Public schools, at the Agency/District level.

  • At the building level, asked to schools offering elementary grades starting at kindergarten (KG or K4), that is all elementary schools and combined elementary and middle schools. 

  • NOTE: LEAs that offer five-year-old kindergarten (KG) but not four-year-old kindergarten (K4), must select 'Yes' to the Education Service question. 

  • NOT being asked to: high schools, including unified high schools and middle schools.

Schools Excluded from the Educational Service (PK) question:

  • Choice schools are not being asked this question because any students enrolled in a Choice school requiring special education services would receive those services from the local education agency (i.e., public school). 
  • Independent Charter Schools because any students enrolled in an ICS requiring special education services would receive those services from the local education agency (i.e., public school).
  • Middle schools, High schools and Unified High schools because they do not offer the grade range required for PK students. 

FAQs, Details, and Points to Note

  1. Select 'Yes' to the Educational Service question for a school in a public school district with the following grade span:

    1.  KG - (up to and including) grade 12: must select Yes to include PK

    2.  K4 - (up to and including) grade 12: must select Yes to include PK

    3. NOTE: At the school district level, the default answer is Yes, with the exception of Unified High School districts. 

  2. Find more information about Grade Level, including information about PK services, on the following DPI web pages:

    1. Grade Level data element page

    2. WISEdata Early Childhood Participants page

    3. 4-year-old Kindergarten page

    4. Kindergarten, 4-year-old kindergarten and Early Childhood page

  3. WISEdata Portal (WDP) has created a validation message (Error 6376) to trigger when a record is submitted for a PK student without an IEP, to flag that record. 

    LEAs can create a record within their SIS on any students they service. 

    DPI does not have any state or federal legislation requiring PK records for students without IEPs.

  4. FAQs: Visit the School Directory Management Portal: Annual Required Updates webpage for information about the specific timing of the opening and closing of the Wisconsin School Directory Management Portal application and for further details of annual required updates.

  5. Visit the School Directory Management Portal: User Guide landing page to view the full user guide for your agency type.

If you need further assistance, please submit a Help Ticket.
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