Parents wait in long lines to register for after care at Jacksonville school

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Some Alimacani Elementary parents are wondering how they are going to get after school care for their children.

Parents lined up around the block, some as early as 3a.m. Friday morning, to get their children into the school’s extended day program.

Stephen Milczanowski was one of them.

He said, “I got here at 4:07 and the people in front of me didn’t get their child into kindergarten.”

A school administrator said low prices and difficulty finding part time help make it hard to open more extended day slots.

This year, the school had 250 open, but almost all were gone by Friday evening.

One parent who waited since 5a.m. in line said, “This is my first year we didn’t make it, so we’ll see… it’s stressful.”

Parents say the Alimacani extended stay is more affordable than private options, costing a hundred and fifty two dollars for morning and evening care.

And with the most recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics study saying 61.9% of married couples with children were employed, after school care is necessity for many families.

Milczanowski said, “They let me do the extended day morning, which lets me drop her off at 7 and since I start working at 8, that’s necessary.”

Chets Creek Elementary and Neptune Beach Elementary still had openings Friday evening and cost the same price.

Cox Media Group