Ga free pre k: Enroll a Child in Pre-K

Enroll a Child in Pre-K

Georgia’s Pre-K is a free, state-funded program for four-year-olds.

The Georgia Pre-K Program provides a 6.5-hour instructional day, 5 days a week, 180 days a year at no cost to families. You must apply to be considered for a spot in a Pre-K program. 

Each Pre-K provider sets its own application processes, registration deadlines, and selection criteria. Some may include lotteries, wait lists, and other processes to accept students. Contact the provider directly to learn more.

Pre-K is voluntary, not compulsory.

How Do I …

• Make Sure Your Child is Eligible
  

  To be eligible for the state’s Pre-K program, your child must be a resident of Georgia and at least 4 years of age on Sept. 1 of the school year.

• Gather What You’ll Need
  

  • Proof of eligibility, such as age and residency. Read more about Pre-K eligibility requirements.
    • Acceptable proof of age includes a birth certificate, passport, hospital record of live birth, legal document, or an official document from another country. 
    • Acceptable proof of residency includes a current lease, property tax notice, homeowner’s insurance bill, mortgage statement, current vehicle registration form, any utility bill listing your residence as the service address, a letter from a shelter, or a letter from your employer, if your employer provides housing.
  • A completed Pre-K program application. Many Pre-K programs accept applications online. If you need to print out application forms, download them from the DECAL website.
  • If your application is selected, you will need to provide additional information to formalize your child’s enrollment. This includes hearing, vision, dental, and nutrition examination certificates as well as immunization records. These completed forms can be provided by a county public health department and your healthcare provider. If you need to print out these forms, download them from the DECAL website.

• Find a Pre-K Program
  

  Find a Pre-K program using the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning’s search tool. Pre-K programs are offered by local school systems and child care learning centers.

  • Local school systems
    • Require you to be a resident of the school system’s district
    • Generally accept registration applications between January and mid-March
    • May limit how many schools your child may be considered for when you apply to the system’s Pre-K program
  • Child care learning centers
    • Are not part of the local school system
    • Have no state limit to how many centers you can apply to 
    • May offer programs besides the state-funded Georgia Pre-K Program, so make sure you’re applying to the no-cost program
    • Do not have county residency requirements
    • Generally accept registration applications around the same time as the local school system

• Apply for Pre-K
  

  Each provider has a different application process. Contact the local school system or the child care learning center for application instructions.

  You must complete and submit one application per child by the deadline.

  Applying does not guarantee admittance into a Pre-K program.

• Next Steps
  

  If your application is selected, you will receive notification from the local school system or child care learning center by email, phone, or mail. Please follow the program’s instructions to confirm your registration.

  If your application is not selected, it will be placed on a waiting list. You do not have to reapply to move off the waiting list; if another child drops out of the class, your application may be offered a spot.

  Once your application is selected, you will need to complete the enrollment process as instructed by the local school system or child care learning center. If you miss the deadline, your spot will be forfeited.

More Resources

Early Childhood Programs / Prekindergarten Program

• In March of 2023, Fulton County Schools Early Childhood Programs staff hosted two virtual sessions for parents of Pre-K and Kindergarten students. These “Round Up” meetings were recorded and are presented here for those who were unable to attend. Also included with the recordings are PDF versions of the Powerpoint slide deck used in these meetings.

   

  
  

  Pre-Kindergarten Round Up Meeting: March 8, 2023    Powerpoint Slide Deck (PDF Format) Pre-Kindergarten Round Up Meeting Recording (Click to download the .mp4 file)

   

  
  

  Kindergarten Round Up Meeting: March 21, 2023 Powerpoint Slide Deck (PDF Format) Pre-Kindergarten Round Up Meeting Recording (Click to download the .mp4 file)

• NOTE: The FCS Pre-Kindergarten program has limited spaces. Spaces are only allocated through a lottery application process which opens on March 1, 2023 and closes on March 17, 2023. View the 2023 – 2024 Pre-Kindergarten Lottery and Pre-Registration Guidelines in the ‘important documents’ section of this page.

  NOTE: The FCS Pre-Kindergarten program is funded through DECAL Bright from the Start. Lottery funding is never guaranteed, and classes are pending until state funding is awarded.

  Fulton County Schools implements the state-funded Georgia’s Pre-Kindergarten program. We are proud to offer 87 lottery funded Georgia’s Pre-Kindergarten classrooms in 47 elementary schools throughout the district.

  We provide children with developmentally appropriate learning activities and experiences that prepare young children to be school ready for Kindergarten. For a child to be school ready, they are socially, emotionally, physically and cognitively prepared for success in Kindergarten.

  Fulton County’s Pre-Kindergarten program helps children become independent, self-confident, enthusiastic learners. Participation in the program encourages children to develop good habits and daily routines. Research shows that children benefit when instruction is child centered. Child centered instruction allows teachers to facilitate learning in an environment that fosters children’s initiative, exploration, and collaborative interaction with other children and adults.

  To ensure a smooth transition to Kindergarten, families are provided information and assistance in preparing for their child’s enrollment in Kindergarten.

  Through Fulton’s Prekindergarten Program, the child will:

  • Develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills.
  • Develop mathematics skills by recognizing and using numerical concepts, understanding patterns and relationships, and problem solving.
  • Develop science skills by exploring, manipulating, and experimenting with objects in the physical environment.
  • Develop the ability to move in ways that demonstrate control, balance and coordination.
  • Develop the ability to participate and function in a social environment.

• Get Georgia Reading

  Ready4KGA

  Bright From The Start

  National Association for the Education of Young Children

• Students who are four (4) years of age on or before September 1 of the enrollment year AND live within the Fulton County Schools attendance zone are eligible to enroll in the FCS Pre-Kindergarten program. Families must provide proof of birth (age) and residency to register for the program. Children are eligible to attend Georgia’s Pre-Kindergarten for one year only.

• For students who have been allocated a seat in an FCS Georgia’s Pre-Kindergarten classroom, the following documents are required:

  • Proof of date of birth (birth certificate): must be uploaded into Infinite Campus prior to beginning school
  • Residence Verification: must be uploaded into Infinite Campus prior to beginning school
  • Social Security Card or waiver: must be uploaded into Infinite Campus prior to beginning school
  • Immunization Certificate (Form 3231) within 30 calendar days of beginning school
  • Ear, Eye, Dental, and Nutrition Screening (Form 3300) within 90 calendar days of beginning school

• Alpharetta
  Asa Hilliard
  Barnwell
  Mary M. Bethune
  Brookview
  Campbell
  Cliftondale
  College Park*
  Conley Hills
  Dolvin
  Dunwoody Springs*
  Esther Jackson*
  E.C. West
  Feldwood
  Findley Oaks*
  C.H. Gullatt

  Hamilton Holmes
  Hapeville*
  Heards Ferry*
  Hembree Springs*
  Heritage
  High Point
  Hillside*
  Ison Springs
  Lake Forest*
  Liberty Point*
  Love T. Nolan
  Manning Oaks
  Medlock Bridge*
  Mimosa
  Oakley

  Palmetto
  Parklane
  A. Philip Randolph
  Renaissance
  Roswell North*
  S.L. Lewis
  Seaborn Lee
  Shakerag
  Spalding Drive*
  State Bridge Crossing
  Stonewall Tell
  Summit Hill*
  Sweet Apple*
  Vickery Mill*
  Wolf Creek*
  Woodland

   

  *Inclusion Class locations for 2023-2024

How to get a hectare of land in the Russian North for free

New number

WG-Nedelya

Motherland

Thematic applications

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Text:

Tikhonov Sergey

08/04/2020 18:30

In the Russian North it will be possible to get a hectare of land free of charge. The Ministry for the Development of the Far East has already prepared a draft law on this matter. It is planned that the program will start working next summer. Analogies with the project, which has been operating in the Far East for several years, suggest themselves, but the parameters of the “Arctic hectare” will differ from those of the “Far East”. What are the differences and how to get land, Deputy Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic Alexander Krutikov told Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Lev Fedoseev / TASS

Any citizen of Russia can get an Arctic hectare?

Oleksandr Krutikov: The draft law provides for the following model – in the first six months of the program, only local residents will be able to apply. In my opinion, it is fair to first give an opportunity to those who have been living in the Arctic for a long time. At the end of this period, residents of other regions of Russia will receive such an opportunity.

Here, of course, we took into account that the Arctic tourism is becoming more and more popular. I am sure that in the central part of Russia there will be entrepreneurs who will take advantage of this opportunity to develop tourism infrastructure in the Arctic. Such initiatives must be supported and stimulated in every possible way. If we again draw an analogy with the Far East, approximately 10% of the 83 thousand who received land there are not residents of the region. The vast majority of them took the land for the development of tourism in one form or another. There are even examples, residents of Moscow on the Kuril Islands are making a tourist base. I’m sure it will be the same here. Tourist places – Karelia, Kola Peninsula and others. Again, this will be a big plus for local economies. It is important to understand that we do not oblige anyone to move or register. A person can live in peace in any Russian region and develop his business in the Far East, and in the future in the Arctic territories.

Many people think of the Arctic as bare rocks, ice, and at best tundra. Who needs land in this region?

Alexander Krutikov: Only people who have never been to the Arctic zone of Russia can think like that. And they probably didn’t even read about it. The Arctic is not only tundra, icebergs, ice and polar bears. 2.5 million people live in the Arctic zone of Russia. There are large cities here, such as Murmansk, Arkhangelsk and hundreds of other settlements of 5-10 thousand people. And these people also have a need to have some kind of household plot, dachas, residential buildings, and do business. They will be given this opportunity.

The Arctic is not only tundra, icebergs, ice and polar bears. 2.5 million people permanently live in the Russian North

We have been repeatedly approached by the regions about launching a program in the Arctic, like in the Far East, to simplify land acquisition. We made the final decision during an extremely difficult period of quarantine and self-isolation, when people who had dachas or their own houses found themselves in a privileged position. They were not locked within four walls. And we have 9 in the Arctic0% of the population are citizens who sometimes live in not the highest quality housing. And then we decided that we should give them the opportunity to take land in the first place in order to build country houses.

For residents of other regions, the “arctic hectare” is an opportunity to get a piece of land in magnificent, stunningly beautiful places. This is the Kola Peninsula, the Arkhangelsk region, the north of Karelia.

One hectare is a lot for a dacha, but may not be enough for a business. Is it possible to get a larger area or, conversely, a smaller one?

Alexander Krutikov: We are talking about an area of ​​up to one hectare per person. If you need less land, you can take 20 or 30 acres. For example, just for a summer residence. There were quite a few such cases in the Far East.

A large family can take plots of 5 and even 10 hectares – one hectare per person, including children. There are cases in the Far East when entire cooperatives were created to take over several hundred hectares. Even small settlements are being formed, where people have taken land in a very heap and together they are developing some kind of economy or housing construction. Such a technical and legislative possibility is provided. In addition, the mechanism is experimental. In the Far East, we are already coming to the conclusion that people who have successfully mastered one land plot have the opportunity to receive land of an even larger area.

How will plots be distributed? For example, Chupskaya Bay is a very beautiful place. Will it be possible to choose a site there?

Alexander Krutikov: There will definitely be a choice.

A service for selecting sites in the Far East has already been created, we assume that land in the Arctic zone will be selected there as well. This is the federal information system “NaFarVostok.RF”. You go to this resource, you have an electronic map in front of you, and you can draw your site right on it. An application is automatically generated there. You sign it and send it electronically. Everything is pretty fast and convenient. Now Rosreestr, by the way, is interested in this service in terms of the possibility of its technical use in Russia as a whole. There will be several differences from the “Far Eastern hectare”. In the Arctic, the regions themselves will determine the territories where the land will be distributed. For example, in the case of the Chupskaya Bay, the decision lies with the Murmansk Region. This was done so that later they would not say that we are distributing land in the tundra. And the regions know better where the land will be in demand.

Also in the Far East there is a restriction on the issuance of land near cities – buffer zones. There is no point in them in the Arctic, precisely because the commercial attractiveness of this land is practically zero. Therefore, we are extremely interested in having as many open areas for granting land as possible. There is so much of it – both in the Far East and in the Arctic – that each inhabitant of our country will have enough for a hectare. We were supported by almost all subjects of the Russian Federation. And most importantly, we supported those regions where there will be demand for land.

The Far Eastern Hectare program has been criticized for problems with infrastructure – difficult access to electricity, lack of roads. Are there any subsidies or benefits for connecting to the infrastructure in the Arctic?

Alexander Krutikov: We have been saying from the very beginning of the program in the Far East that the allocation of free land is an opportunity for a person to realize some of his ideas, dreams, ambitions. Someone will be engaged in business, someone will build a house. But that’s just a possibility, and that’s just land. Today, more than 200 million hectares have been opened in the Far East. No restrictions. A person can take a plot anywhere, even in a deep forest. If we also assumed obligations on infrastructure, it would be, to put it mildly, strange. In the Arctic, as well as in the Far East, we do not take any obligations on infrastructure. This is a separate task.

There will be no buffer zones in the Arctic, and we expect that the regions will allocate territories for the program where the basic infrastructure is. First of all around the cities. I talked to almost all the mayors of large cities in the Arctic, finding out how far from the city they even have a road by which a person can get to his site. I was given different numbers – from 10 to 30 kilometers. Such is the free transport accessibility here.

At the same time, of course, we will help with the infrastructure if entire settlements appear, as in the Far East. If people unite from 100 people or more and together create a new settlement. For example, more than 200 people united in the Khabarovsk Territory. Infrastructure is being built there at the expense of public funds.

On what specific conditions does a person receive land?

Alexander Krutikov: Land is provided for free use for five years. During this time, the site must be developed: build a house or organize a business there. If this condition is met, then after five years it is possible to get it into ownership. You do not have to pay for this, but in the future there is an obligation, as the owner of the land, to pay land tax. It is tied to the cadastral value of the land. There is another option. If a citizen does not want to bear the burden of ownership for one reason or another, he can lease this land plot. In this case, he will pay a rental rate, which is also tied to the cadastral value.

Land is provided for free use for five years. During this time, the site must be developed: to build a house or organize a business

Is it necessary to determine the scope of activity on the site before receiving it, or can it be done after?

Alexander Krutikov: When submitting an application, a person indicates what he will do on this earth. But he has the opportunity to change his choice. If in the process of developing the site, for example, he decides not to engage in beekeeping, but wants to build a house or a camp site, he needs to change the type of economic activity in his “personal account” on the site. If he wants to build a dacha, then he should write: “Construction of a dacha.”

Will program participants be extended to support business in the Arctic?

Alexander Krutikov: Yes, there are no restrictions here. Federal laws to support entrepreneurship in the Arctic apply to the entire Arctic zone from Karelia and Murmansk to Chukotka. Therefore, wherever a citizen takes a plot, he will be able to receive all the benefits and preferences provided for by these laws. Plus, now each region is preparing its own regional benefits that will affect the segment of micro and small businesses. For example, under the simplified taxation system, rates will be reduced for those who will start their own business. This is exactly what can be claimed when allocating land in the Arctic zone.

Of course, we will analyze people’s demand. If some type of activity turns out to be more popular, we will think about new support measures. We are interested in ensuring that as many people as possible in the Arctic have the opportunity to realize themselves and their potential.

I am convinced that most people will take land to build houses. This also requires support measures. It is possible, for example, to simplify access to logging if someone wants to build a wooden house. Or initiate special mortgage programs. But for now, these are all theories.

How will the interests of the indigenous peoples of the Arctic be taken into account when distributing hectares?

Alexander Krutikov: Territories for distribution of land will be determined taking into account the interests of indigenous peoples (SIPN). This is expressly stated in the bill. A public council of the Arctic zone will also be created, which will include representatives of indigenous peoples. Its task, among other things, is to prevent a possible conflict of interests of the indigenous peoples of the North with industry and, in general, with the development of the economy, and try to resolve such situations. Those territories that the regions determine for the distribution of land must be agreed with the public council. Believe me, we have enough land where there are no indigenous peoples and their traditional activities. We have agreed with the Association of Indigenous Peoples that simultaneously with the launch of the “Arctic hectare” we will begin to solve the problems of indigenous peoples, including land issues. Here we are talking about the fact that the interests of the indigenous peoples of the North were often not taken into account, companies entered the territory of their economic activity and implemented their projects. It is better to redirect the question of why they did not solve it earlier to other departments, since the Ministry for the Development of the Far East received Arctic powers only a little over a year ago, therefore, purely physically, it could not deal with these problems. Now let’s help.

The “Arctic Hectare” program will provide people with the opportunity to get land in stunningly beautiful places with magnificent nature and clean ecology. Photo: Valery Matytsin / TASS

Experience

On the eve of the Day of the Indigenous Peoples of the North, celebrated on August 9, important additions were made to the presidential package for the development of the Arctic. The Arctic Council of Indigenous Minorities has been created, which will control the development of the Arctic. A state support program for 13 (reindeer herding, fishing, hunting, etc.) traditional activities of peoples has been adopted. The package includes the “Indigenous Business Responsibility Standard”. We are talking about the offensive of cities, oil and gas centers on the habitat of these peoples and the types of compensation for losses to peoples who will lose the opportunity to engage in their usual activities.

It was also decided to improve the law on education for the peoples of the North.

For 40 peoples, or 250 thousand people, of the North, Siberia and the Far East, this is a chance to preserve the age-old way of life and identity. Thus, the state support program provides for both access to high-tech medicine and the preservation of a nomadic lifestyle. A special challenge is access to education. Among the key tasks are the creation of the Institute of Translators from the National Languages ​​of the Peoples of Russia, the expansion of the adopted program for the creation of textbooks for indigenous peoples and the improvement of laws that will introduce the concept of “nomadic education”. As an approach, especially for secondary schools, the Ministry of Education is still challenging it, but according to “finish the law.”

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90,000 Russians were given the right to a free hectare in the Arctic. How to get land in the north?: Events: 69th parallel: Lenta.ru

Photo: Andrei Stepanov / Shutterstock

1

All Russians got the right to free land in the Arctic

On February 1, a law came into force, according to which residents of all regions of Russia received the right to free land in the Arctic zone. Prior to this, the “Arctic hectare” was issued only to residents of territories in the Arctic.

Russians have the right to receive land in six regions – the Murmansk region, the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Karelia, the Komi Republic and the Arkhangelsk region. The application can be submitted by one person or collectively (up to ten people).

Land can be allocated, among other things, to voluntary migrant compatriots living abroad. You can select a site online on the Hektarvarktike.rf program portal, which contains an interactive map with available sites. It will be possible to issue land in ownership or lease in five years, subject to its development.

The total area of ​​land available to program participants exceeds one million hectares. The widest choice is in the Murmansk region (more than 700 thousand hectares) and in the Republic of Karelia (337 thousand hectares).

“The Arctic is different. There are places for eco-friendly recreation here – for example, in Karelia and the Murmansk region, for tourism, development of small and medium-sized businesses. It is important that the initiatives of active people at the local and regional levels are based on additional support measures that reinforce the federal program,” said Alexei Chekunkov, head of the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East.

Photo: Andrew Burton / Getty Images

2

Russians got their first “Arctic hectares” last year

Distribution of Arctic hectares in Russia began after the expansion of the Far Eastern Hectare program: the first stage of distribution of plots took place last year. Then 56 residents of the Arctic zone of the country received land for doing business, building their own housing and other purposes.

According to the head of the Ministry for the Development of the Far East, Alexei Chekunkov, during the six months of the program, more than 4.3 thousand people have applied, more than 2.1 thousand have already registered the land for free use. Initially, only applications from representatives of the local population of the Arctic were accepted.

According to the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic, the largest number of applications for land plots was received in the Murmansk region (2478), the Arkhangelsk region (883) and the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (554), as well as in the Republic of Karelia (434). The most popular destinations for free plots were individual housing construction, agriculture and tourism.

Meanwhile, the first free hectare in the Arctic was raffled off on June 4, 2021 at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). SPIEF participant from Tatarstan Damir Khudin became the owner of a plot of land in the Murmansk region.

3

The Far East Hectare program expanded to the Arctic in April 2021

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced on April 15, 2021 that the Russian government will expand the Far East Hectare program to the Arctic. The head of government noted that when expanding the program, special attention will be paid to preserving the traditions and culture of the indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East.

The program has also expanded for entrepreneurs who are registered in the Arctic. They got the opportunity to work on preferential terms in several districts at once.

The expansion of the Far East Hectare to the Arctic was approved by the State Duma in May 2021.

Photo: F. Hecker / globallookpress.com

4

The issue of “Arctic hectares” was first discussed in Russia in 2020 proposed in October 2020. Then the relevant bill was submitted to the government for consideration.

According to the document, land can be obtained for the construction of a residential building or any economic activity, including the creation of a household plot and the provision of various types of services, such as tourism.