Park Record, December 9, 2023--
Transportation to preschool for autistic child costs up to $100 a day for family. District officials unsympathetic: Tell South Summit ‘to build a school closer to Silver Village’
Monaye Whyte’s just trying to get her 3-year-old daughter, K’Leyah Senior, to preschool. Because she doesn’t have a car, that means paying Uber $40-$50 for each of the four trips K’Leyah makes to school each week.
When she moved from Jamaica to the Silver Creek Village in April, Whyte thought her child would be able to attend the nearby Trailside Elementary School for early education programs. Later she learned that although she has “Park City” in her address, she lives in an unincorporated spot of Summit County within the boundaries of the South Summit School District.
To send her daughter to preschool, she has to accompany her over 15 miles to South Summit Elementary School.
“It is a difficult process,” she told the Summit County Council during a public hearing on Dec. 6. “She’s autistic, so she needs the interaction with the other kids.”
On school days, which are Monday and Wednesday, Whyte takes K’Leyah on the 15-mile trip from their home to Kamas. On Mondays, even though her school day is only two hours long, Whyte said she has to travel back to Park City to get another Uber driver who is willing to make the trip to pick her daughter up. On Wednesdays, Whyte’s husband picks K’Leyah up and Whyte goes to work.
Depending on the day, this costs around $80-$100, and Whyte is concerned snow storms and rough weather are going to bring higher prices with them.
If she tries to stay in Kamas and find a ride, she explained it is nearly impossible.
“We are unable to get Ubers from Kamas when we’re there. We have tried so it doesn’t cost us as much,” she said. “We’ll sit there after she’s finished at 11:30 for an hour before we can get one.”
“That all sounds reasonable,” Council Chair Roger Armstrong said with sarcasm. “How can we help?”
Whyte told the council that after she tried to transfer her daughter to Trailside Elementary, K’Leyah was rejected. She appealed the decision and explained the situation, and the appeal was rejected less than half an hour later.
“Unfortunately the district is closed to out of boundary children this year due to the construction at all schools combined with current projected enrollment,” Park City School District Board of Education Chair Andrew Caplan told her over email. “I would encourage you to contact the South Summit School District and petition them to build a school closer to Silver Village.”
When Whyte explained the response, County Councilor Canice Harte took a note from Armstrong.
“Also sounds reasonable,” he added, with sarcasm.
John Kenworthy, the owner of Flannigan’s and Whyte’s employer, also talked to the council about the preschool and the mother’s situation.
“She’s just excellent in every way. She is the poster employee we all search for in town. We all know we have a tremendous issue with the wealth gap,” he said. “It is probably a minute and a half, less than two minutes to trailside from her house. … The problem’s just going to keep growing and growing and growing. And I really appreciate your time, I know it’s not your jurisdiction.”
Armstrong told Whyte to reach out to him after the meeting to see if he could do anything, and said later he is working to see what he can do.
When contacted by The Park Record, Caplan and other Park City education board members opted to speak through the district’s spokesperson, Heidi Matthews.
Despite Caplan’s suggestion to Whyte that she ask South Summit School District to build a new school closer to home, Matthews said that even if the Park City School District were to open enrollment to students outside the district’s boundaries, preschool wouldn’t apply.
“Preschool is reserved for those who live in the boundaries of the Park City School District,” she said.
Asked if South Summit School District offers any transportation options that could connect Silver Creek Village with South Summit Elementary, the district’s superintendent, Greg Maughan, mentioned that grades K-12 are at Silver Summit Elementary and Silver Summit Academy, both of which are within walking distance of the neighborhood. Both schools, he said, can accommodate K-12 students who move to their boundaries.
“SSSD does not provide transportation options for pre-K students,” he said in an email. “I am unaware of any school district in the state that does provide transportation for pre-K.”
While Whyte said Silver Summit Elementary did offer a once-a-week, one-on-one 30 minute preschool session between K’Leyah and a teacher, she’s worried her daughter would not get the benefits of socializing with kids her own age.
“She’s mostly non-verbal,” Whyte said. “She says a few words but she doesn’t talk talk. … Since starting school, she has been trying to say a lot more words. She’s just doing so much better based on her interaction with the other kids and as well as her teacher."