1 in 10 MO preschool students expelled each year

MISSOURI (KFVS) - According to the University City Children's Center near St. Louis, nationwide, there are more expulsions in preschool than any other grade level.

It's a surprising statistic, considering just how young these kids are, but school leaders in the Heartland say they're prepared to deal with it.

More specific numbers say 1 in 10 Missouri preschoolers are expelled.

Despite having only two students removed from the school in 10 years, teachers at the University School for Young Children say it can happen.

"I've been here ten years and I can say it may happen," said Becky Moore the school's director.

Although uncommon, the University School for Young Children is prepared to handle such a problem.

"It is the teacher's job to document some of those occurrences," she said.

Typically, teachers say they deal with minor offenses on a day-to-day basis.

"With preschoolers it is your typical things, they get upset, they get angry with a friend. They might hit, they might kick. Spitting sometimes is a very common thing," said Megan St. John.

And if a student should ever act out, parents are notified.

"We communicate with parents on a daily basis. Whether it is from the in fact classrooms all the way up to the preschool age, we talk with parents every morning and every afternoon. We let them know how their day was, if they had some troubles throughout the day, we can brainstorm together and try to figure out what the trouble was. Maybe they just had a bad morning, we all have those days," she said.

Last November, President Barack Obama signed the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014 into law. Part of this legislation required states to develop plans to reduce preschool expulsions.

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