Early Childhood Updates
Early Childhood Update (December 2025)
December 10, 2025 — The Parkway Board of Education agreed to purchase an early childhood center in Town & Country, taking a significant step toward reducing long waitlists for Parkway’s early childhood programs.
The facility at 2100 S. Mason Road is currently home to the Raintree School, which announced relocation plans to its families. Parkway intends to purchase the property for $4.3 million using Prop S bond funds, honoring the commitment voters made in November 2022 to expand early childhood opportunities. The funds are separate from the district’s operating budget and can only be used for this purpose. They cannot be used to cover salaries, offset healthcare costs, or the revenue loss from the Senior Citizen Property Tax Freeze.
The agreement, yet to be finalized, comes one year after the Board halted plans to build a new early childhood facility in Manchester, between Wren Hollow Elementary and Southwest Middle. After hearing concerns from neighbors about traffic and loss of green space, the Board promised to look for a more workable solution.
“Tonight’s action delivers on that promise,” Board President Jeff Todd said following the vote. “We plan to expand early childhood access in a way that both honors our voters and respects the feedback we heard from the community.”
The new center is a 12,000-square-foot facility on 11 acres with woods and a small stream, offering rich opportunities for outdoor play and exploration. Inside, the building includes eight classrooms, a multipurpose space, and a kitchen — all designed specifically for young children.
These spaces will support developmentally appropriate teaching, therapies, and play for Parkway’s youngest learners.
The center will allow more families to access Parkway’s early childhood programs, significantly reducing the waitlist next school year, and potentially adding more space for more children in a later phase.
Early Childhood Update (November 2024)
November 13, 2024 — Following the approval of Prop S in November 2022, Parkway's plans for a new early childhood center have evolved in response to traffic concerns and other complications at the proposed Manchester site.
As we shared plans to build on the field between Southwest Middle and Wren Hollow Elementary, some community members raised significant concerns, particularly about the loss of green space and the impact of increased traffic. A Parkway traffic study confirmed that congestion would indeed be an issue—and costly to address.
In response, we explored alternative locations and paused work on a new center. We hoped to find a site large enough in the south area to meet early childhood needs as concerns about the Wren Avenue location continued to grow. Despite these efforts, we have not found a clear, feasible alternative, and we have too many concerns to build on the Wren Avenue site.
However, the needs are still there. Our early childhood staff drive between multiple satellite locations to serve our students in early childhood classrooms, creating inefficiencies. We have a waitlist of hundreds of families who want to enroll their children in Parkway’s program, but we lack the space to serve them. The message from our community has been consistent: Parkway needs a long-term, sustainable solution that ensures high-quality early learning opportunities for all children.
Next Steps: We are actively exploring immediate and long-term solutions through the Facilities 2050 initiative and a newly formed South Area Early Childhood Workgroup. These efforts aim to develop strategies that cater to our community's immediate needs and long-term educational goals.
Our Commitment: We will direct Prop S bond funds approved for a new center toward our commitment to early childhood education when a solution is identified.
Your Support: We are grateful for the community's ongoing support and patience as we navigate these challenges. Updates on our progress will be shared on the Early Childhood Center project webpage and through the Facilities 2050 updates.
Stay tuned for more information as we work together towards a solution that benefits all Parkway students and families.