DAVENPORT COMMUNITY SCHOOLS TO OPEN NEW EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION CENTER IN FORMER EAGLE’S FOOD CENTER STORE

The Davenport Community Schools is expanding its early childhood education programs with the creation of a new early childhood center in the former Eagle Food Center in the Valley Fair complex at 2826 W. Locust Street in Davenport.  The new center will replicate the model currently found at the Children’s Village at Hoover.

When completed, the new center will feature 18 to 19 classrooms and be able to accommodate approximately 250 children, ages 6 weeks to 5 years.  The 35,000 square foot facility will include green space located to the north of the building, providing outdoor playspace for the children.  “We are pleased that we could use this existing empty infrastructure within our community to meet an important need for area children,” explains Bill Good, Operations Director for the district.  The Eagles store satisfied many requirements – it’s all on one floor, had enough square footage for build-out, provided both adequate greenspace and adequate parking, and was in a good location for families.  He adds that the project will not use general fund money.  Instead, support through the Title I program and tuition will fund the cost.  It is anticipated that the new center could be open by September 1. 

The early childhood education model at the Children’s Village at Hoover was recently one of just three schools in Iowa named a First in the Nation in Education (FINE) award winner for 2003-04.  The Children’s Village, which opened in 1998 in a former elementary school, is one of the first early childhood learning centers in Iowa to develop and implement benchmarks and standards for pre-K students.  The program currently houses children ages 6 weeks to 5 years of age and attributes its success in preparing children to enter kindergarten to research-based practices such as quality staff, a suitable environment, appropriate grouping practices, consistent schedules and parent involvement.

With hundreds of names on waiting lists for the district’s pre-school programs, this planned expansion will help not only to meet a community need, but also provide more area children with the opportunity to benefit from the academic readiness skills now provided at Hoover and other pre-K programs sponsored by the district.  In other growth, the early childhood program currently located at Hayes Elementary will expand to include infants.

This growth in early childhood education reflects the district’s recognition of the value of such programs in better preparing students for school and also supports one of the positions of the Urban Education Network of Iowa (UEN) regarding the increased development of comprehensive, state-funded early childhood programs, ages birth to 5, across the state.  The UEN is made up of the state’s 8 largest urban school districts – including the Davenport Community Schools - and works to address the needs of children and public education.  In addition to members from these 8 school districts, the UEN also involves other community partners.  Locally, James Collins from Deere and Company and Tim Wilkinson from ALCOA, participate in the early childhood education efforts of the UEN, recognizing the impact that student achievement has economic and workplace development.

A formal ceremony to mark the beginning of construction at the site is planned in the near future.  A “sister” tree to the one recently planted at Hoover in celebration of their FINE award will be planted in the greenspace to provide a living connection between the facilities.