State school officials today announced state funding for full day kindergarten increased by $107-point-9 million for the 2012-2013 school year, reaching a total of $189.8 million. The funds will be distributed next week [ December 14 ] to 338 public school corporations and charter schools for more than 79-thousand students who enrolled in full day kindergarten programs this year.

The Indiana Department of Education says this year’s rapid increase in enrollment and funding is the result of 2012 legislation spearheaded by Governor Mitch Daniels and passed by Indiana lawmakers to guarantee 24-hundred-dollars per full-day kindergarten student, funding from the Full Day Kindergarten Grant, which was created in 2005.

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