Beverly Hills Unified School District will open its two preschool campuses to families Friday, Sept. 25, from 3 to 5 p.m. The open house at the Hawthorne and Horace Mann locations gives families a chance to meet educators and explore the program as BHUSD takes over the preschool from the city, the Beverly Hills Standard reported.

Registration is required. Families must list every adult and child attending when they sign up at bhusd.org/preschoolopenhouse, according to the district's invitation. Registered families will receive arrival instructions and campus access details by email the day before the event.

Families choose which campus to visit: Hawthorne, at 624 N. Rexford Dr., or Horace Mann, at 8701 Charleville Blvd. Campus placement for enrollment is offered first-come, first-served and preferred locations are not guaranteed, according to the district's preschool website.

The open house comes weeks after the Board of Education voted 5-0 on Sept. 8 to adopt a resolution directing staff to develop a phased plan for a comprehensive early childhood center. The resolution also calls for expanding programming to serve children as young as newborns through age 3.

As we reported Sept. 19, the preschool transition is part of a Joint Powers Agreement between the city and BHUSD worth nearly $39 million over three years.

At the Sept. 8 board meeting, Board President Judy Manouchehri framed the program as a long-term investment. "I hope that this will develop into a flourishing program where the community can bring their children to us from day one as babies," she said, as reported by the Beverly Hills Courier.

Assistant Superintendent Dustin Seemann told the board at that same meeting that the district had submitted documentation to the state and was awaiting license numbers for both preschool sites. Staff is expected to present a full report on the early childhood center to the board by Dec. 1.

The Hawthorne campus received summer upgrades ahead of the transition, including repainted play equipment and improvements to fencing, landscaping and restrooms.

Families with questions can email [email protected].