Closure of the Child Development Center would be seen as the end of a program that is vital for students and the community.
Since 1993, the Child Development Center (CDC) has been a safe haven for students with children at EC, as well as the community, Sandra Parvis, Director of the EC Child Development Center, said.
Helping thousands of children and families over the course of its existence, the CDC provides not just a simple daycare service, but a fee-based preschool program for young children, according to the CDC guidelines.
Though the CDC has helped many through the years, enrollment for the past year has been low.
Because of low enrollment and the cost of maintenance, the CDC may not have much of a future left, Jasmine Hormati, student trustee said.
Though enrollment for the CDC has been low, there are still students benefitting from the program
“My son started going there 3 semesters ago, so a little over a year,” Jennifer Galardo, 21, business administration major said.
“It’s not just a daycare its a preschool and they teach your kids.”
Closure of the CDC would be very difficult for those who actually depend on the program. Without the program many parents would not have to ability to attend college.
“I would’ve had to drop out of school, it would be detrimental for parents and single mothers if it closed,”Galardo said.
“Before, I had a babysitter but she had gotten sick, she had cancer so she couldnt watch my son, I found out about the Child Development Center and with caregrant they provided help and paid for the program.”
For students at EC, the CDC helps them to be able to further their education and coincidentally that of their child or children, Galardo said
Despite the costly issue the school faced with the CDC, the Board of Trustees inevitability decided to prolong the lifeline of the CDC, Parvis said.
The board of trustees decided to not close the center after a 5-1 vote, she added.
“The board decided to keep it open for another year,” Hormati said. “Their current director is going to be retiring so they’re looking for a new director.”
Though changes to the CDC are bound to happen, it is for the betterment of the students, community and most of importantly the children to extend the closure.
“They have different ideas of how they can not only make it a better program for children but also for our students that are in the Child Development program at EC,” Hormati said.
“Sometime next year the board will decided whether or not they will keep it open.”
Ultimately the CDC has many benefits to the program and just as much support for it to stay open. Through the years, the CDC has served countless families of EC students and will continue to do so with consistent support.
