CUSD spotlights Los Listos preschool; board hears enrollment and inclusion updates

The Cabrio Unified School District board on June 18 heard a detailed overview of the Los Listos preschool program and a lengthy question-and-answer session about enrollment and services.

Chief Academic Officer Fael Castillo introduced the recognition, thanking the preschool staff for their work. "I'd like to take a minute to recognize Los Listos preschool staff — the entire staff for their commitment to early education and early learning," Castillo said. Gracia Kraven, the site supervisor for Los Listos, then described the program’s screening, inclusion, and family-engagement work.

Kraven said Los Listos conducts universal developmental screenings (Ages & Stages) and uses the Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP) for twice-yearly observations that inform instruction and goal-setting. "We do have 45 spots this year for the classrooms in the morning and also for the wraparound services," Kraven said, describing morning classroom capacity plus afternoon wraparound slots. She explained that many families are ranked for state funding by income and that a Dec. 1 cutoff for age eligibility affects placement.

On special-education support, Kraven said Los Listos operates an inclusion model that pairs general-education and special-education staff inside the classroom and also runs a separate special-day class (SDC) with a smaller, six-student cohort for students with greater needs. She said the program has served 13 inclusion students this year and that the program follows a 20/80 model to balance IEP and general-education students while providing push-in services such as occupational therapy and speech in-class.

Board members asked about how the program fills its roster and how many qualifying applicants go unserved. Kraven said most qualifying students are placed in a district service or referred to partner programs when immediate space is not available, and that space rather than funding is the primary constraint to expansion. She also described TK wraparound arrangements at two sites (Hatch and an unlicensed classroom at El Granada) and noted that the state funds the California State Preschool Program (CSP) slots used by Los Listos.

Why it matters: Los Listos provides early intervention and inclusion services that the district and parents say improve long-term outcomes for students, especially children with early indicators of developmental delay. Board members pressed staff for clearer midyear benchmarks and local assessment cadence so the board can better monitor progress toward district LCAP goals.

The board accepted the presentation and invited staff to return with details on local benchmark timing and capacity options. Kraven invited board members to the preschool’s end-of-year celebration scheduled for the following week.