Rimes Early Learning and Literacy Center in Leesburg is getting a major makeover next school year, and it is all about the littlest learners. Lake County Schools plans to turn the campus into a preschool-only site focused on free, full-day Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK). That shift will send current kindergarten-through-second-grade students back to their zoned elementary schools while keeping specialized services in place for preschoolers with disabilities. District leaders say the move is designed to give working families a reliable, no-cost early education option in public school classrooms.
What the district announced
Under the new setup, Rimes will operate solely as a VPK campus, offering a full instructional day with free breakfast and lunch, weekly enrichment in music, STEM, and PE, and teachers who are state-certified and hold college degrees. The instructional day is scheduled from 7:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., and families can add before-care starting at 7 a.m. and after-care running until 6 p.m. for modest fees, with financial assistance available for those who qualify. Registration is open to children who will turn 4 by Sept. 1, 2026, and Rimes will remain a non-zoned campus, so any Lake County family may apply, according to Lake County Schools.
How the full-day model works
Florida’s school-year VPK program requires 540 instructional hours, which works out to roughly three hours a day, and that portion is funded by the state, according to the Florida Department of Education. Local reporting notes that Lake County will pick up the tab for the extra hours needed at Rimes so students can attend an approximately six-hour, no-cost school day, turning the site into a full-day public preschool option.
Enrollment and parent reaction
Enrollment is still ramping up. For the 2026-27 school year, Rimes has enrolled 26 VPK students so far and can take nearly 40 more. The campus, which once served about 300 students at its peak, now has roughly 235. It already serves about 90 preschoolers with disabilities. Parents told the Orlando Sentinel they appreciate the school’s smaller size and stable staff, with one parent saying she was “just so thankful” for the expanded, no-cost school day.
Why Lake County is expanding early learning
District officials frame the Rimes overhaul as part of a broader push to close early-grade achievement gaps and make preschool a dependable piece of the school day for working families. Superintendent Diane Kornegay has stressed that expanding access to early learning is a priority to prevent achievement gaps from forming in the first place. State data also indicate that participation in VPK is associated with stronger kindergarten readiness scores, according to the Florida Department of Education.
How to enroll
Because Rimes is a non-zoned campus, Lake County families across the district can apply through the school’s VPK portal. The program is open to children who will turn 4 by Sept. 1, 2026, and there is no tuition for the instructional day. Families seeking details on eligibility, how to apply, and the cost of wraparound care can find registration information and updates on the district’s Rimes VPK page, per Lake County Schools.
