The Islip School District is poised to begin its Universal Pre-K program this school year. A high-quality UPK program benefits children from all backgrounds, and the district is pleased to inform that its UPK will begin on Jan. 31, 2022. To be eligible for the Islip School District UPK program, a child must be an Islip School District resident and 4 years of age on or before Dec. 1, 2021.

The Islip UPK program will be able to accommodate 53 students and will be housed in multiple classrooms at Wing Elementary School. The program will be open Monday through Friday and follow the same calendar as the Islip School District. The program will be full day from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Parents are responsible to find their own transportation as buses will not be available for the program.

The Islip School District will hold a lottery to determine the 53 students who can participate in the program. Students’ names that are pulled after the first 53 will be put on a waiting list according to when their number was drawn. The only way that a student can participate in the lottery is if they are fully registered with the school district. Registration for UPK will take place on Dec. 13, 14 and 15, 2021 between the hours of 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. at Wing Elementary School. There are no appointments, so one may come on any of these days to register. The forms on the district website, www.islipufsd.org , must be filled out before arriving for in-person registration. As long as you register on one of these days, you will be eligible for the lottery. Registration does not guarantee a child a place in the program, so being the first few people to register does not give anyone an advantage. Just make sure parents are completely registered by the end of the registration period.

The lottery will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 21, at 5 p.m. It can be viewed live on YouTubevia a link that will be shared on the district website on the day of the lottery. There will be no in-person attendance for the lottery. The results will be shared on the district website in case one isunable to watch live.