Preschool scholarship provides "opportunity of a lifetime"
Nathaniel Chol's daughters have an opportunity he never dreamed of growing up in Sudan -- the opportunity to get an American education. For his two youngest girls, twins Adau and Alakiir, that begins with two years of preschool.
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| Adau with instructor Sarah Petz |
"I can't appreciate it anymore," explains Nathaniel. "GRCC has really transformed them in a way I wasn't expecting."
Adau and Alakiir attend the Grand Rapids Community College Laboratory Preschool on a scholarship provided by the Great Start Early Childhood Scholarship Fund. The twins are among 119 three year olds in Kent County receiving a preschool scholarship. Next year, the children will enroll in a publicly funded preschool (either the Great Start Readiness Program or Head Start ), giving them two years of quality early education prior to kindergarten.
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| Alakiir at preschool |
"Our hope is that they'll enter kindergarten really ready to learn," says JaneAnn Benson, Director of the GRCC Lab Preschool. "I'm confident they will given the growth we've already seen."
The growth is remarkable, according to Nathanial and the preschool staff. Since starting school this fall, the girls' language, early literacy, and communications skills have blossomed. They're more confident and responsible and make friends easily.
The program also allows Nathaniel to advance his own education. He's a full-time student at Davenport University, and his wife works full time. He says they never would have been able to afford preschool on their own.
The scholarships are funded through a combination of private and public
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| The Chol family |
contributions, including federal monies administered by the Early Childhood Investment Corporation. Currently there is funding for this school year and the next. If the program demonstrates strong outcomes, Great Start, First Steps, and other partners will work to sustain it. Heart of West Michigan United Way is project fiduciary. GRCC is one of 16 preschools participating.
"We're very happy because we're reaching some families that we never would have reached before," Benson explains. "This really meets our mission as the community's college."
Nathaniel is making sure his family takes full advantage of the opportunity.
"I can't dream of anything more for my daughters than they complete their studies. This is an opportunity of a lifetime."
Click on the link to learn more about the Great Start Early Childhood Scholarship program.
The share of Kent County children living in poverty has increased every year of the last decade -- it's now more than 20%. (The federal poverty level, FPL, is about $22,000 for a family of four). Poverty rates grab the headlines every year when the Kids Count report is released. However, a deeper look at the report shows that nearly half of children countywide are in economically unstable situations. 