Julington Creek Elementary School added a voluntary pre-kindergarten class for the 2026-27 school year, giving four-year-olds in the area a new on-site option.

Superintendent Tim Asplen toured the new VPK classroom on Friday, Aug. 28, during his "All Access with Dr. Asplen" visit to the school. Principal Joy Reichenberg walked Asplen through the VPK room along with kindergarten, first-grade and second-grade classrooms, according to First Coast Observer.

During the Aug. 28 tour, Asplen also watched kindergartners play a spelling game called Sparkle and met second graders presenting as presidents and first ladies in a Hall of Presidents project.

The addition had been in the works for more than a year. At a School Advisory Council meeting on April 23, 2025, Reichenberg told parents the district's budget process had set classroom positions and staffing levels for the coming year, and the school would add a pre-K classroom, according to SAC meeting minutes. She said some classroom locations would shift to improve scheduling efficiency.

Florida's VPK program is state-funded and open to all four-year-olds. It focuses on early literacy and pre-math skills to prepare children for kindergarten.

Julington Creek Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade and has a recorded enrollment of 923 students. The school sits in a corridor of sustained residential development in southern St. Johns County. Districtwide, enrollment grew 21.7% between the 2018-19 and 2024-25 school years, reaching 52,324 students across 55 schools, according to Florida Department of Education data reported by Tallahassee Reports in May 2026.