PETITION UPDATE: Our Fight Is Bigger Than Smart Start

First, thank you to everyone who has signed, shared, and supported this petition. The response from our community has been overwhelming, and it is clear that East Hampton residents care deeply about our children and our schools.

Unfortunately, this issue has become even more concerning.

In addition to the proposed elimination of the Smart Start Preschool Program, the Bellringers Program is also facing elimination. While Smart Start impacts our youngest learners, Bellringers impacts students at East Hampton High School and provides unique educational, leadership, and mentorship opportunities that cannot simply be replaced.

Many students, parents, educators, and alumni have expressed how devastating this news has been. Bellringers is more than just a program—it is a tradition that fosters responsibility, confidence, leadership, and meaningful connections between students. The potential loss has left many in our high school community feeling heartbroken and unheard.

At the same time, families of Smart Start students are facing their own uncertainty. Children have already been accepted into the program for Fall 2026. Acceptance letters have been sent. Families have celebrated. Plans have been made. Now those same families are being told that the very program their children were accepted into may no longer exist.

Smart Start is a state-supported early childhood education program. East Hampton's preschool programs are NAEYC-accredited and provide critical early learning opportunities that help prepare children for success in kindergarten and beyond. Once these programs are dismantled, they are not easily restored. Funding opportunities, grants, staffing, and approvals can take years to rebuild.

This is no longer just about one program. It is about the future of educational opportunities in East Hampton—from our youngest learners entering school for the first time to our high school students preparing for their futures.

We are asking town leaders to reconsider these cuts and explore alternatives before eliminating programs that directly benefit children.

Please continue sharing this petition. Attend meetings. Speak during public comment. Contact local officials and legislators. Let them know that investing in children should remain a priority.

Our children only get one childhood. Once these opportunities are gone, we cannot simply give those years back.

Thank you for standing with East Hampton's students and families.