On August 20, 2025, Rim of the World Unified School District’s (ROWUSD) first Head Start Preschool opened its doors at Valley of Enchantment Elementary School (VOE). Inside the freshly furnished classroom, Preschool Teacher Jennifer Ybarra and Instructional Aide Hailey Johnson welcomed our district’s youngest learners.
The room was filled with curiosity, excitement, and possibility. For the first time, families across our mountain communities now have access to a no-cost public preschool that connects early learners to our schools from the very start.
Trustee Zarate said of the preschool opening:
“This was a campaign promise I ran on in 2024 and I am proud that our district has worked diligently to find grants to support this, design it, and open it within a year. Preschool was something I did not have access to as a kid as it was mainly only available to families with the means to pay for private preschool. It fills me with immense joy to know that children on our mountain, regardless of means, will now be able to access this learning environment at a crucial age of development.”
Building the Foundation: From Vision to Action
Summer 2024: The journey began in mid-2024, when our Board of Trustees collaborated with our Superintendent to set a goal of opening a public preschool program in our communities. The Superintendent then began working in earnest with staff to design this program, search for funding options, and plan the logistics to bring this idea to reality.
January 2025: By January 2025, the Board approved a three-year partnership with the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) through the Tomorrow’s Readiness Starts Today (TRST) grant program, providing $250,000 annually to launch early learning and family engagement initiatives. As outlined in the grant, TRST funding helps districts like ours develop capacity for preschool and early family support, while the County provides wraparound services, community partnerships, and system development tools.
Summer 2025: By this summer, the district had finalized agreements with SBCSS’s Preschool Services Department, securing a Head Start partnership contract. The County provided not only program funding, but also the classroom setup, curriculum materials, professional development, and meals, thereby ensuring our district’s first preschool would launch fully supported.
August 20, 2025: ROWUSD Head Start Preschool officially opens at VOE!
True Partnership in Action
Collaboration between district and county teams was key. As our Director of Educational Services, Jennifer Whiteside, wrote to SBCSS’s Early Education Department:
“We want to thank you for your continued support of ROWUSD, the wonderful opportunities provided through the TRST grant to serve our 0–5 population, and the generous Lakeshore furniture and materials you shared with our district. We are excited to welcome you to our new ROWUSD Head Start Preschool at VOE.”
That support included an $11,521.92 furniture donation approved by the Board in September, equipping the classroom with developmentally appropriate, high-quality resources designed to enhance learning and engagement.
Every element (from the child-sized furniture to the colorful materials and playful learning centers) reflects the collaborative effort to make this preschool a place where curiosity thrives.
Why Early Learning Matters
The benefits of preschool are well established: The development of early literacy and number skills, social-emotional development, early intervention opportunities, and stronger long-term academic outcomes.
For a rural district like Rim, the impact is even greater. Our mountain communities face unique barriers from transportation and child care availability to geographic isolation. By offering a no-cost, public preschool program right in our schools, we help close those gaps while strengthening family connections to their community’s schools.
As the Superintendent shared when announcing the grant to school staff in March 2025:
“The benefits of preschool include early learning, closing the socioeconomic achievement gap, early intervention, and increased student enrollment for the district by connecting families to local schools.”
What’s Next?
This is only the beginning. VOE’s preschool will serve as a pilot model, paving the way for future programs at Charles Hoffman Elementary (CHE), Lake Arrowhead Elementary (LAE), and the Lake Gregory Education Center (LGEC). Over the next three years, the district will evaluate outcomes, refine systems, and apply for California State Preschool Program (CSPP) funding to sustain and expand early learning opportunities across all Rim communities.
As we look to the future, the goal remains clear: Ensure that every family in our district from Cedarpines Park to Green Valley Lake has access to high-quality early education close to home.
The doors at VOE may have just opened, but the path they create will lead generations of students toward lifelong learning.
This work will support the following District Goal:
1 – Student Learning
Related Links
- ROWUSD Regular Board Meeting 23 Jan 2025 Action Item 10.2: Approval of Tomorrow’s Readiness Starts Today (TRST) Grant from San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools.
- ROWUSD Regular Board Meeting 14 Aug 2025 Action Item 11.1: Approval of contract with San Bernardino County Preschool Services Department.
- ROWUSD Regular Board Meeting 18 Sep 2025 Consent Calendar Item 12.6: Approval of preschool furniture donations.