Spokane’s newest preschool and infant care center, serving dozens of the county’s most vulnerable families and children, is set to open late next month at Gonzaga Family Haven, Catholic Charities' latest affordable, permanent supportive housing community.
Gonzaga Family Haven – a Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington-run housing community for 73 impoverished families, in partnership with Gonzaga University, Gonzaga Preparatory School and St. Aloysius Parish – will open Wednesday, March 30. The housing community’s childcare services will open in late April.
“Our wraparound childcare services are an important and vital resource to the Spokane community, especially for our most vulnerable populations experiencing trauma and intergenerational poverty,” said Bobbi Woodral, District Director of Head Start, Early Head Start and ECEAP. “This new facility, made possible through unique and innovative community partnerships, will help bridge the gap for families experiencing homelessness.”
The Head Start and Early Head Start facility will serve 64 children and will include two preschool classrooms for children ages 3 to 5, two toddler classrooms for children ages 1 to 3, and an infant classroom for children 6 weeks to 12 months old.
A full commercial kitchen is also on site, ready to cook breakfast, lunch and snacks from scratch.
“Families and most importantly, children need a roof over their heads at night before they can think about anything else,” said Rob McCann, president & CEO of Catholic Charities. “Gonzaga Family Haven will not only help families stabilize their lives but will give them options for a brighter future.”
Head Start is a federal program administered by the Community Colleges of Spokane that provides early childhood education, social services and health services to low-income families.
The Head Start and Early Head Start programs operated by CCS serve hundreds of children across Spokane County at 11 different locations, including centers at Spokane Community College and Spokane Falls Community College.
In addition to Head Start, afterschool tutor lab and academic support programs, Gonzaga Family Haven will include on-site wraparound services such as case management, connection with neighborhood medical resources, substance abuse counseling, health and wellness classes, adult education, employment readiness, food preparation and nutrition courses, and more.
Gonzaga Family Haven is the 17th tax credit property that Catholic Charities has been awarded and constructed since 2012.
For more information about Head Start and Early Head Start: https://ccs.spokane.edu/Head-Start