Madison Reporter

The Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) will expand its tuition-free four-year-old kindergarten (4K) program for the 2025–26 school year. New full-day options will be available at Ray W. Huegel, Lapham, Midvale, and John Muir elementary schools. Additionally, MMSD is launching a pilot of five-day programming at Paul J. Olson Elementary School.

“We are committed to offering highly desired opportunities for families with school-aged children in MMSD,” said Dr. Joe Gothard, superintendent. “We’re seeing annual increases in our 4K enrollment, which speaks to the reputation we’ve built for high-quality, accessible early learning options. Expanding options for families and reducing transitions for our youngest learners helps strengthen our school communities from the very beginning.”

The pilot at Olson will be the district’s first full-day, five-days-a-week 4K section and will operate alongside three existing half-day sections. Enrollment in this pilot will be determined by lottery among eligible families living in the Olson attendance area who are enrolled in MMSD by Tuesday, August 19.

Prior to this expansion, Muir, Midvale and Olson did not offer a full-day option; both Muir and Midvale will continue their morning half-day programs along with new full-day choices. At Huegel and Lapham, an additional full-day section as well as morning programming are being added.

Full-day options are also being introduced at several early care and education sites: Big Oak Child Care Center, Bernie’s Place, Goodman Community Center, Red Caboose Childcare and The Playing Field. The MMSD 4K portion at these locations is provided free of charge; however, families must pay for any extra wraparound care beyond regular school hours. Additional spaces will also be made available at local Head Start sites.

MMSD has focused on expanding its 4K program over recent years to meet growing demand from working families and improve access to early education across the district’s neighborhoods. These efforts aim to prepare students for kindergarten while increasing equitable access throughout Madison.

This initiative seeks to support children with greater needs by providing more full-day and extended-week seats both within neighborhood schools and through community partners.

“We’re doing more than adding classrooms,” said Culleen Witthuhn, director of early learning. “We’re reimagining how we serve our youngest learners. When children have more time to explore, create and build relationships in a consistent setting, it deepens their learning and sets the stage for long-term success.”

Families interested in enrolling can find more information on MMSD’s website.