Five-year-old Marlaina Paulding likes playing in the tents in her VPK classroom at Felix A. Williams Elementary School in Martin County. She likes learning the alphabet and numbers, and the Spanish ...

VPK is an optional state program funded by the Florida Department of Education.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The cost of child care is on the rise and research shows it’s largely due to the pandemic. But in Florida, there is the option of free volunteer pre-kindergarten, also known as ...