I would absolutely not move a rising kindergartner so that she could stay with a friend who may not be in her class and because friendships evolve esp. at this age. I think it is likely that public k would also not be academically challenging, and play-based multi-age sounds great to me if she is happy. Saving $10k would be worth considering in my opinion, and possibly getting used to the routines of public would help her the next year with the transition. Maybe. So--I personally would remove the "friend" issue from consideration and make the choice based on other factors. Good luck.
