Child care center opens
CALEXICO — The Imperial County Office of Education and the Housing Authority of the city of Calexico held the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Child Care Education Center on Thursday morning as part of the county’s effort to reach children and families with the most need.
The early care and education center is part of the California Department of Education Preschool Program, which is designed to better prepare young children for transitional kinder and kindergarten.
“We want to make sure that children between 3 and 5 years of age are better-prepared to go into transitional kinder or kindergarten,” said Richard Cordero, senior director of the ICOE’s Early Care and Education Programs. “By building a foundation at an earlier age, less intervention is needed at a later age.”
As of now, ICOE operates 20 early care and education centers throughout Imperial County with a countywide enrollment of 654 children. The new center in Calexico is a joint effort with ICOE and the Housing Authority of the city of Calexico. The center is located at one of the Housing Authority’s properties in Escalante Plaza.
Cordero said that the joint collaboration began with the previous Housing Authority director Orlando Johnson, who suggested the ICOE look into the possibility of repurposing a trailer located on the property to become a care and educational center.
“This is a blessing. There are scarce opportunities like this for children of the community and throughout Calexico,” said Teri Nava, the current director of the Housing Authority of the City of Calexico.
The center is expected to be fully running by next week. The facility will have a morning and an afternoon session, which have a capacity of 19 children each, for a total of 38 children. Eight children have already been enrolled in the program.
The morning session will run from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., while the afternoon session will be from 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Cordero said census date makes the city of Calexico a priority-one city, which means that there are more children that are eligible for these services than the services that are being provided at the current time.
“Hopefully by opening these centers throughout the county, we’re providing a service for the children so they are better equipped for the future,” Cordero said. “Studies have shown that some demographics struggle a little more in education. We’re just trying to build that foundation as early as we can.”
Nava said the Housing Authority is looking to continue the partnership it has formed with ICOE to help expand the reach of the programs within the city and noted that they have more location throughout Calexico that are potentially viable to become another early care and education center.
During the ceremony Cordero said the most valuable aspect of the partnership with the Housing Authority was to allow the ICOE to take these services right to the heart of the communities that need them the most.
Those interested in learning more about the early care and education center in Imperial County and ICOE’s programs for children call 760-312-6431.