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Special to The Truth<\/p>\nSpecial to The Truth<\/p>\n
Enrollment Open Now with Nine Highly Rated, Neighborhood Preschool Providers<\/p>\n
John C. Jones, president of HOPE Toledo, recently announced the organization\u2019s partnership with nine community-based preschool providers to offer more than 200 high-quality, full-day, affordable preschool seats to four-year-olds across the Toledo area. Enrollment is available now at HopeToledoPreK.com with classes scheduled to begin September 1, 2021.<\/p>\n
The nine, inaugural HOPE Toledo Pre-K partner providers are: All 4 Kids, Believe Academy, Catholic Club, Children\u2019s Discovery Center (Talmadge), East Toledo Family Center, Learning Ladder Child Care 2, Quality Time Child Care Center, Rise and Shine Childcare Academy and Toledo Day Nursery.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are truly excited to see our vision begin to come to fruition through our partnership with these nine partner providers,\u201d said Jones. \u201cAnd this is just the start as we look to bring more providers on board in order to fulfill our mission — that every Toledo child has the opportunity to attend a high-quality early childhood educational program that prepares them to succeed in kindergarten and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n
Currently, more than 80 percent of Toledo\u2019s children enter kindergarten without the skills, behaviors or knowledge necessary for success (based on 2019 KRA scores). But high-quality, evidence-based preschool programs have been shown to improve outcomes for children throughout their lives.<\/p>\n
Studies show that children who start kindergarten ready to learn are more likely to pass 3rd-grade reading tests, 8th-grade math tests, graduate from high school, go on to college, and earn more income over their lifetimes. Criteria for high-quality programs include:<\/p>\n
Full-day instruction
\nIncome-based, sliding-scale tuition
\nComprehensive curriculum-led learning
\nLow teacher-to-child classroom ratios
\nActive parent engagement
\nWell-prepared, highly qualified educators
\nRoutine developmental assessments
\nSupport, coaching, and funding to help providers achieve and maintain quality
\nRegular program evaluations and accountable oversight<\/p>\n
\u201cHigh-quality preschool can help children succeed in their first years of school and reduce the early achievement gap,\u201d said Dondra J. Coleman, administrator and owner of Learning Ladder Child Care. \u201cThis is especially important for low-to-moderate income families who have historically had to deal with disparities related to the achievement gap and everything that goes with it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are grateful for the partnership with HOPE Toledo because it allows us to serve families who potentially couldn\u2019t afford these opportunities otherwise,\u201d said Coleman.<\/p>\n